Albus Potter and the Sylvarum
by Lysander's Pen
Summary: So after a few failed attempts to write a summary here, all I can say is that this is not just Albus Potter's story. Multiple perspectives, multiple personalities, multiple eccentric characters, and the continuation of fiction's most legendary saga.
1. The New Generation

**A/N: Bear with me here, it takes every opening story a few chapters to get off the ground. Too many introductions, I suppose. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy, and leave me some comments.**

**Diclaimer: Whatever it is that usually goes here. Obviously the Harry Potter series and all its characters belong to JK Rowling. Anything you recognize, I don't own.**

**Chapter 1: The New Generation**

As the train left the station and Albus found a compartment with Rose, well away from his brother, he thought about his father's words. If it was true that you could choose which house you wanted to be in, then what was the point of the sorting? And wouldn't anyone with his head in the right place choose Gryffindor?

Rose noticed her cousin brooding. "What is it," she asked, in a soft tone that she had learned from her mother.

Albus hesitated a moment, deciding how much to tell her.

"What house do you want to be sorted into?"

Rose frowned slightly at the question. "Well, Gryffindor, I suppose."

Albus didn't find this answer thoroughly appeasing, but before he could reply, Rose continued.

"I mean, my father of course keeps insisting that I ought to be in Gryffindor, but my mom says that all of the houses are advantageous in their own way."

"Even Slytherin?" Albus's eyebrows had risen slightly.

"Slytherins have wit and cunning so they can influence others. Slytherin has produced some truly great wizards, and not all of them were evil."

"But," Albus said with a frown, "Even the defining properties of the house are villainous. Muggle-borns can't get in, and only very rarely do half-bloods get in, those that are simply pure Slytherin qualities. Wait…" He looked at his cousin. "You don't even have to worry about possibly ending up in Slytherin, do you? You're not a pure-blood."

"Well," said Rose, "that depends on how you define the term 'pure-blood'. My mother is a witch, but she's a Muggle-born. Both of my parents are magical, so I could be considered a pure-blood. If you think about it, there are probably very few wizards that don't have a single Muggle ancestor. There aren't that many wizard families, relatively. The term 'pure-blood' simply gets tossed around a lot by Slytherins. But I believe I could be in Slytherin. And I could do just as well there as Scorpius Malfoy."

"Could you now?"

The words hadn't come from Albus. He and Rose both turned. Standing at the entrance to their compartment was none other than Scorpius Malfoy.

His blonde hair was slicked back smoothly, and his black robes were spotless. Even though the sorting had yet to take place, Scorpius was already wearing a green and silver tie, obviously his father's old one.

"You're Ron and Hermione Weasley's daughter, aren't you?" Scorpius said, gazing at Rose intently, with a slight smirk on his face. "You think you could do better in Slytherin than me? Think you could even be in Slytherin, since your mother was a…?" But he didn't say the word. He broke his gaze away from Rose and looked down briefly, before turning to Albus. "So you're the son of the famous Harry Potter." Scorpius held out his hand. "How do you do?"

Albus hesitated a moment, then shook hands with him. Scorpius then turned back to Rose and held out his hand to her, but she declined, eying the hand warily.

"Making friends with the Weasleys, Malfoy?" A black boy with a slanted face now stood at the entrance to the compartment. He wore spotless robes featuring a Slytherin badge, and looked to be about a third or fourth-year. His expression towards Scorpius combined a glare and a smirk.

Scorpius met his eye, matching the look perfectly. "Not exactly, Zabini. Hello Nott, Montague," he added, glancing at the large boys on either side of Zabini.

Zabini turned his glare towards Albus. "You're Harry Potter's kid."

Albus glared back at him, wondering for how long he would merely be known as 'Harry Potter's kid.'

Zabini held his gaze on Albus for a moment, then gave a little nod and turned back to Scorpius. "If you want to be in Slytherin, Malfoy, you had better watch who you go and make friends with."

"I think you had, too, Zabini." Another black boy had entered the scene. Albus recognized him as Shane Thomas, the son of his parents' friend Dean. He was a third-year in Gryffindor.

James appeared beside Shane, and behind them came Daryl Finnigan and Dom Petrino, a Muggle-born.

"Hello, Potter," Zabini said with a snort. "Back again to see if you can break your father's record for most detentions, hmm?"

Albus felt anger rise within him, but James smirked. "You know it, Zabini."

Zabini was left speechless after his bluff was called. He merely gave a curt nod and spared Scorpius a quick glare, then turned around and left, Nott and Montague following in his wake.

James glanced at his brother, than at Scorpius. It took only an instant for James to note the blond hair and green tie and put two and two together. "You're a Malfoy."

Malfoy nodded, holding his head high and trying to appear brave while faced with the Gryffindor third-years.

"I think you better leave too," James said, his voice level.

Scorpius hesitated, then made to leave, but Albus said, "Wait." Everyone looked at him. He looked from his brother to Scorpius. "Do you want to sit here?"

The third-years and Rose all gaped at him. Scorpius looked slightly bewildered as he watched Albus's face for any sign of trickery. After a moment he said in a quiet voice, "Okay." He took the seat next to Albus.

Albus could feel Rose glaring at him, but he didn't look at her. The third-years gaped for a moment longer, than looked at each other. James gave a slight shrug and left, and the others followed. The door to their compartment closed, leaving the three of them in silence.

Minutes passed while Rose turned her glare back and forth between the boys. Albus kept his gaze fixed out the window, though he wasn't paying attention to what he saw through it. Scorpius stared determinedly straight in front of him to a point somewhere off to Rose's left.

Then the compartment door opened again. "Something off the trolley dears?" All three quickly dug their hands into their pockets for coins.

The presence of sweets eased the tension a little, and Albus and Rose started comparing chocolate frog cards, although a slight edge remained in Rose's voice. Scorpius watched them silently.

A Ravenclaw prefect came by and reminded them to don their robes as they would be arriving soon. Rose and Scorpius were already wearing theirs, but Albus quickly pulled his on over his Muggle clothes. Scorpius looked at Rose's robes, surprised to see that they looked new. He could have sworn his grandfather had mentioned that the Weasleys couldn't afford anything new. Scorpius shrugged this off as Rose noticed him watching her. She looked away from him as he turned back to his chocolate frogs.

Soon they felt the train slowing down. Albus felt the excitement that had been building within him reach a new peak.

They heard Hagrid calling as they exited the train, and moved quickly over to him.

In the middle of the crowd moving towards the boats they were shoved together with another boy. No one got a good look at him until they had seated themselves in a boat.

He had brown hair and green eyes, the same green eyes as Albus. Unlike most of the other 1st years, he wasn't gazing fixedly up at the massive castle silhouetted against the night sky.

"I'm Alexander Regine Zarin," he said. Albus, Rose and Scorpius all introduced themselves.

Rose was looking back and forth between the boy and Albus. Albus felt uncomfortable under her scrutinizing gaze, but there was no denying it, Alexander had the same eyes as him.

Alexander noticed Rose's looks, and he turned to Albus. There was a long moment as green eyes met green eyes.

Then Alexander said, "I inherited my eyes from my mother, who got them from her mother before her. My mother was a Muggle. I'm half-blood."

Albus was about to respond, but then something else occurred to him. "Isn't Zarin the name of the potions teacher at Hogwarts?" He could have sworn he had heard James complaining about "Professor Zarin," whom he apparently hated.

Alexander nodded smugly. "He's my uncle. He's Head of Slytherin also. I know I'm going to get into Slytherin, even though it usually only takes pure-bloods. My father can trace our lineage back to Salazar Slytherin himself."

Albus knew this last part wasn't true. His father had killed Slytherin's last living descendent, the Dark Lord Voldemort. He exchanged glances with Rose and Scorpius, but none of them opted to say anything. The boy seemed very proud of having made this claim.

They reached the cave beneath the castle, and Hagrid led them up the steps to the entrance hall. Silence had fallen over the first-years.

In the entrance hall they were met by Professor Ferius Flitwick, who had inherited the position of Charms Teacher from his father, Filius. Headmistress McGonagall had given her consent to the move.

Flitwick was just as small as his father had been, and just as jumpy. He glanced around at the first-years. He then explained the sorting process for anyone who didn't already know it. Albus felt renewed anxiety rise within him amidst all the excitement. He couldn't be in Slytherin. The hat couldn't put him there.

After a few minutes Flitwick led them into the Great Hall, and Albus's attention was immediately taken away from the imminent sorting, if for only a moment. The Hall was truly spectacular. The first-years looked around in amazement as Flitwick brought the ancient and severely burned Sorting Hat onto its stool.

Voldemort had set fire to the hat years ago during the battle at Hogwarts, but it had miraculously survived the flames. The hat featured powerful ancient magic, and no simple fire could destroy it. It didn't look good, but it was still perfectly fine as the Sorting Hat.

The hat launched into its latest song:

_New Wizards and Witches_

_Standing there humbly_

_I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat_

_I'm more than what you see._

_You'll sit here and put me on_

_And you will hear me say,_

"_Now let's see, what have we here?_

_Where shall I place you today?"_

_Worry not about reputes_

_For the four houses here,_

_For none is better, none is worse;_

_Reputations spawn from fear._

_You may yet be in Slytherin_

_But no, you are not bad._

_You'll learn wisdom from power_

_So sit there and be glad._

_Or you may be in Gryffindor_

_Where your bravery will shine_

_But no you mustn't feel the need_

_To match Gryffindor's alumni._

_Or if your passion's learning_

_Ravenclaw may be for you._

_Through intellect and wisdom_

_You'll excel at what you do._

_Or if you value honesty_

_Like those just Hufflepuffs,_

_Among them you will make true friends_

_Who won't seek to get rough._

_But do not dwell overly_

_On the house where you will dwell,_

_Make good friends with one and all_

_Other creatures as well._

_For if there is one thing we learned_

_From the chaos two decades ago_

_It's that unity among us all_

_Will smooth history's flow._

There was applause for the hat's song, and then Flitwick began calling off the list of names. "Anderson, Sean." A tall boy stepped up and pulled on the hat, and it shouted "RAVENCLAW!" The sorting had begun.

Albus watched anxiously as the first-years went up one by one. He glanced sideways at Rose, who was watching with a matching nervous expression. On his other side, Scorpius didn't look quite as anxious. He was fiddling with his green tie, assuring himself he would be in Slytherin.

"Dennison, Emmeline." "HUFFLEPUFF!" "Dursley, Harry."

All thoughts were driven from his mind as Albus suddenly stood upright and stared at Flitwick. Rose was staring too, and behind Flitwick, Headmistress McGonagall was frowning. Albus immediately scanned the first-years around him, but no one was walking up to the hat.

"Dursley, Harry," Flitwick repeated, looking at the first-years. He then turned to the Headmistress, who stood up.

"Harry Dursley," she called, her voice clear and stern. Whispers began to break out in the Great Hall as everyone watched the first-years. No one moved. Albus was positively reeling. There was no way it could be the same Dursley family. Not the one his father had grown up with, Muggles who had hated the idea of magic. Yet the name was not overly common, and the child was named Harry. It seemed too much to be a coincidence. And the fact that the Headmistress was now looking at him confirmed it.

But Harry Dursley apparently was not here, and after a moment McGonagall told Flitwick to continue. "Everett, Robert."

Soon it was Scorpius's turn. Holding his head high, he marched forward to the stool. It took all of two seconds for the hat to place him in Slytherin.

Albus's turn was fast approaching. It came all too quickly, and he moved forward, his eyes fixed on the hat. He sat on the stool and the hat was placed on his head.

"Hmm," said the voice of the sorting hat, "another Potter. Truly unforgettable, those Potters, always the most difficult to sort." After another moment the hat said. "You are certainly no exception, Mr. Albus. Of course, like your father and brother before you, you don't want to be in Slytherin." This was, of course, quite clear to the hat, as Albus was repeating it over and over again in his mind. "Don't know what you Potters have against the house. It's just a house, after all, same as any of the other three. It doesn't matter who's been in it. All that matters is the qualities of your personality. I don't place people in Slytherin because they are inherently evil. You could be great in Slytherin, same as the rest of your family. But if not, then I suppose I better also put you in GRYFFINDOR."

Albus removed the hat from his head and moved quickly over to the Gryffindor table. He was not overly pleased, knowing he would have been placed in Slytherin if he hadn't thought against it. But his father had done the same thing, and Albus allowed himself to relax with this thought.

Soon only two first-years were left. Rose and Alexander stood quietly as Rachel Vicsen took a seat at the Slytherin table.

"Weasley, Rose." Flitwick called.

Rose walked quickly to the stool, a million thoughts rushing through her mind. The sorting hat was placed on her head and she heard its voice.

"A Weasley, yet again. There must be more Weasleys now then any other magical family. Even the Potters now have Weasley blood. But you, you're no ordinary Weasley, are you? I remember a girl like you, from the same year as Harry Potter. Granger, Hermione Granger." There was a pause. "Your mother. Interesting. She had both bravery and intelligence in abundance. She could have done just as well in Ravenclaw as she did in Gryffindor. You could too." Another pause. "I placed your mother in Gryffindor because she had an urge to do more than just learn as much as she could. She wanted to be great, to make a difference, a quality I don't often see so strongly in Muggle-borns. Just how much like her are you?" Another moment passed, and to Rose it felt like forever, but then the hat shouted "GRYFFINDOR!"

"Zarin, Alexander." Alexander came up and was placed into Slytherin even faster than Scorpius had been. Albus saw him look at a man at the teacher's table, who nodded curtly at him. This must have been Alexander's uncle, the Potions Master.

He was a pale man with black hair and a grim face. His eyes were jet black. His hands were white and his fingers seemed abnormally long and pointy, as did his ears. Albus thought he looked slightly elfish. Albus looked back at Alexander, who, come to think of it, looked slightly elfish too.

Scorpius had decided back at the boats that he ought to keep an eye on him. Anyone who claimed to be a descendent of Salazar Slytherin was most likely bad news. Scorpius watched Alexander come and sit across the table from him, next to Zabini. He cast the latter a little sideways glance, as though his very presence annoyed and disgusted him. Scorpius noted how Alexander's pale complexion contrasted greatly against the black boy. And obviously Alexander noticed this too.

McGonagall stood up and addressed the hall. "Welcome to another year here at Hogwarts. It is a great pleasure to see all the familiar faces, and to meet all the new ones. First-Years please take note that the forest on the edge of the grounds is strictly off-limits. Also Mr. Filch, our Hogwarts groundskeeper, has a list of ground rules and forbidden objects, most of which are common sense. Beyond that, I would just like to say welcome and enjoy the feast."

She sat down, and heaps of food appeared on the golden platters. Scorpius instantly began tucking into the food, as did Alexander.

"So this is a Hogwarts feast, eh?" Alexander said, grabbing a bottle of pumpkin juice and looking at it. "I'll tell you what we need," he said, grabbing the goblets of everyone around him, Scorpius, Vicsen, another first-year named Vera Sinley, and Zabini, filling them with pumpkin juice, and returning them. "A toast," he said, raising his own goblet. "To Slytherin house. May it dominate all the others henceforth."

"Here, here," the others said enthusiastically, Scorpius chiming in half-heartedly. They all drank.

Across the room, Albus was busily scraping the food off his plate. Across from him sat Rose, eating somewhat more slowly. James came up behind her and leaned over towards Albus.

"Welcome to Gryffindor little bro," James said, holding his hand out for a high five. Albus gave him one as Rose spun around in her seat. James looked down at her. "You too, cuz." He got a high five from her too.

Another familiar face appeared beside James. Victoire Weasley was a silver-haired beauty, just like her mother. She beamed at them. Albus and Rose waved at her.

"Normally the fifth-year prefects would lead you to the common room," Victoire said, "But I told them I would take care of you all instead. They figured that as Head Girl I will do a better job than they would anyway. When you finish eating come find me."

The feast was nearing its conclusion. Albus had just decided he could eat no more when an extremely familiar voice called out "Professor McGonagall."

Albus swung around towards the entrance to the hall. There stood his father, with a blonde boy who looked to be around Albus's age, though somewhat larger around the waist.

"Mr. Potter," McGonagall responded, standing up. "Well this is a pleasant surprise. Welcome back to Hogwarts."

Albus saw that most of the teachers had also stood. Flitwick, Hagrid, and Neville had stood up immediately. Professor Zarin had remained seated.

There were excited whispers rising among the students, some of the students nearest Harry Potter at the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables leaned as close to him as they could, their hands held out for him to shake. Harry gently complied with many of them.

"Er, sorry for the interruption, Professor, but it seems one of the first-years missed the train."

McGonagall's gaze shifted to the boy, although just about everyone else kept their eyes fixed on the one and only Harry Potter. "Harry Dursley, I presume?" The boy nodded meekly. "Why weren't you on the train with the other students?"

At this Harry Potter frowned slightly and walked up to McGonagall at the teacher's table, bringing the boy with him. "He didn't know how to get onto the platform, Professor," he said in a quiet voice.

"I see," said McGonagall. "Didn't your cousin remember seeing you come onto it twenty years ago?"

He shook his head. "He was never with me when I got onto it," he said with a slight frown.

McGonagall sighed and looked at Harry Dursley. "I see. Well, we'll have to get you sorted. The feast is over anyway." She addressed the hall. "Fifth-year prefects, please lead the first-years up to the common rooms. Everyone else please retire as well." She turned to Harry Dursley. "Please follow me to my office. You may come too, Mr. Potter."

Albus felt his father's eyes on him as he followed closely behind Victoire out of the hall. This had been strange to say the least. He had not expected to see either of his parents again until Christmas, and he felt slightly embarrassed to see his father show up so soon, even if the reason had nothing to do with him.

Victoire led them up the marble staircase, and through a series of corridors. The paintings followed their movements.

They entered a large chamber full of moving staircases, the Grand Staircase. Victoire led them up one that was stationary, for the moment. Once they reached the seventh floor there was a portrait of a rather large lady in a pink dress.

"Bonjeur, Madame," Victoire said with a charming French accent. "Fleur de Lis." The fat lady smiled at her and the portrait swung forward, revealing a hole in the wall through which they all climbed through. "The lady has chosen a French theme this year," Victoire explained. "My mother would be so proud."

Albus wondered if this didn't have something to do with the fact that this was Victoire's last year. James had once teased Victoire that she got along best with the paintings.

"Boys' dormitories are through that door on the left, girls' through the door on the right. As first-years you will have your dorms at the top of the staircases within. And boys," she added with a small giggle, "Don't try to get up the girl's stairs, you will find it…rather difficult. Goodnight." And she left back through the portrait hole, still giggling to herself.

Albus turned to Rose, who for some reason was smirking. He merely shrugged and looked around the common room. There was a picture at home of his father with Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione sitting in the common room during their second year at Hogwarts. The room still looked pretty much like it had in the picture. The décor, for the most part, was scarlet. The walls were scarlet, along with the rug on the floor. The ceiling was a pale golden color, and the curtains around the windows were golden. There were comfortable red armchairs and a couch in front of the fireplace on one side of the circular room. On the other side were chairs and tables for homework and studying.

Rose had gone over to one of the windows, and Albus followed her. He looked out across the grounds. In the distance he could see Hagrid's hut, with smoke rising from the chimney. Just behind the hut was the dark outline of the Forbidden Forest. Between the hut and the castle Albus could see the tree that James had identified as the Whomping Willow, and off to the side he could see the edge of the lake, but not the part where Dumbledore's marble tomb was.

"I'm going up to see what the dormitories look like," Rose announced, "then perhaps I'll go to bed. See you in the morning."

Albus bid her goodnight, then turned towards the boys' dorms. He climbed up the staircase and reached the first-year dorm. Inside were five beds, although Albus remembered that only three boys besides himself had been sorted into Gryffindor. He couldn't remember their names. He believed one of them was named Robert something-or-other.

He found his trunks at the foot of one of the beds, but decided to move them over to the vacant bed, which was closest to the window.

He looked out of the window, and this time had a full view of the lake. Dumbledore's white tomb seemed to glint in the night. Beyond it the water was black. Albus thought he saw a ripple mar the smooth surface. Was there really a giant squid in the lake? And merpeople too?

"Albus?" Albus swung around and faced his father, who stood in the entrance to the dorm.

"Hi, dad," Albus said, somewhat uneasily. He looked around his father to see if anyone was coming up behind him.

"I just came up to see if you were settling in alright," Harry said. "My business here is for my cousin and his son. It was a bit of a shock when they turned up at the station just after we'd seen you off. I hadn't seen Dudley since…" His voice trailed off. Albus already knew what hadn't been said anyway, and certainly didn't mind it not being repeated. "Anyway," Harry continued, "turns out his son has got some magic in him. Makes me wonder if there was some in my mother's family after all, not just in her. Anyway they went to King's Cross but couldn't find platform 9 ¾. So I had to bring little Harry Dursley here myself. Had to take him to Diagon Alley first though, since he hadn't managed to get any of his school stuff."

Albus could imagine his father leading the boy through Diagon Alley, trying to explain to him everything that Albus had been brought up learning.

"Professor McGonagall offered me rooming for the night. I must say, I couldn't resist," Harry said. Albus stared at his father. "Don't worry," Harry added, raising his hands in supplication, "I won't be anywhere near Gryffindor Tower. There's guest housing down by the entrance hall. After breakfast tomorrow you'll be on your own till Christmas."

Albus instantly regretted his look, though of course his father understood his urge to be independent from his family while at school. But before he could say anything, the other three first-year Gryffindor boys came into the room. They stared at Harry, their eyes huge.

"You're Harry Potter," one of them said.

"Yes I am," replied Harry mildly.

The boy turned to Albus. "And you're his son."

Albus nodded. This was exactly what he hadn't wanted to happen.

The boy stuck out his hand eagerly. "I'm Robert Everett." Albus shook his hand, and the other two came over to introduce themselves. They were Frank Truit and Jonathan Redford.

Robert turned back to Harry. "Mr. Potter, sir, if you don't mind, could you tell us how you defeated Voldemort. I mean of course we've all heard the story, but it would be absolutely brilliant to hear it from you yourself."

Harry glanced at his son uneasily, then looked at Robert. "I'm sorry, but I can't right now," he said, to Albus's immense relief, "I must be going." But just as he was turning to leave, Neville showed up.

"Harry!" he shouted.

"Hello, Neville. How are you?" Harry said, trying to turn Neville around and lead him out of the room.

"Fine, and you?"

"Fine as well."

Harry had almost succeeded in exiting the room with his friend, but just then Robert said, "Professor Longbottom?"

Neville turned. "Yes?"

"You were there when he defeated Voldemort. Perhaps you can give us a first hand account."

"Okay," Neville said. Albus's heart sank. "Do you want to stick around Harry?"

"No, sorry Neville, I can't. I'll be downstairs in the guest chambers if you want to come by later." And with an apologetic glance at his son, Harry turned and descended the stairs.

So Albus was forced to sit through Neville's recounting of the epic showdown between "the Great Harry Potter" and the Dark Lord Voldemort. He kept his gaze turned well away from Neville, trying not to pay attention as the other three followed the story raptly. He was beginning this year so deep in his father's shadow he doubted he could be anything more than "Harry Potter's son." Maybe he would have been better off in Slytherin after all.

Despite the comfort of the bed, Albus didn't sleep too well that first night. This year had certainly started off on the wrong foot. He hoped his classes got off to a good start tomorrow.

But just as he was preparing to go down to the Great Hall for breakfast, Professor McGonagall's voice sounded throughout the castle, magically amplified.

"_All teachers please report to the Slytherin Common Room. All students please remain in your common rooms."_


	2. The Darkness at Dawn

**A/N: Hey. So if anyone is mad at me for a few details that are different, let me say that I wrote these first few chapters immediately after reading DH and whatever details were not present in those first few months afterwards I didn't know at the time. Some of the details, such as the color of Rose's hair, are important in the story and since I didn't know her actual hair color until Thursday night at the premiere, I'm sticking with this. So, sorry.**

**Diclaimer: Same as last chapter.**

**Chapter 2: The Darkness at Dawn**

Harry had just been getting out of bed when he heard the announcement. He quickly dressed and rushed out of the guest chambers, grabbing his wand, which had been the only possession he had brought with him when he brought Dudley's son.

When he arrived at the entrance to the Slytherin Common Room, Professor Zarin was there, a grave expression on his face as he let the teachers in and held back curious Slytherin students who had already left the common room and were now trying to get back in.

"Mr. Potter," Zarin said with mild surprise, "I don't believe you are a teacher here."

Harry frowned, but McGonagall's voice came through the doorway. "Let him in, Roal."

Zarin grudgingly let Harry enter the room. The teachers were standing around Professor McGonagall, whose expression was grim.

"What's happened?" Harry asked, looking around at the teachers standing there. This was only his second venture into the Slytherin Common Room, his first being during his second year at Hogwarts. It looked much the same now as it had then.

"See for yourself," McGonagall said, and she led Harry and the teachers through the room into where the dormitories were. Harry noticed that the boys' and girls' dormitories were not in separate areas here like they were in Gryffindor Tower. They were merely across a hall from one another.

McGonagall led them into a dorm where a number of scared-looking students were huddling around a bed. "Out, all of you," she barked. "This is the last time I will tell you."

The students filed out silently. Harry noticed a couple of the girls were crying. He looked over to the bed they had been hovering around and saw a boy there. At first glance he looked to be asleep, but his chest wasn't moving. Harry knew instinctively that he was dead.

"Jonas Zabini," McGonagall said, identifying the dead boy. "A third-year."

Blaise Zabini's son, no doubt, thought Harry. The boy looked just like his father.

"Madam Bell," McGonagall said, and Harry looked around to see none other then Katie Bell standing there, wearing a healer's gown. "We need to get him to the hospital wing. We need to know how this happened."

Katie nodded solemnly, looking at the boy with a frightened expression.

"Heads of houses," McGonagall continued, "Please go to your Common Rooms and ensure the students that everything is alright. For the time being they don't need to know what happened. And make sure they stay in their common rooms."

McGonagall withdrew an invisibility cloak from within her robes and carefully wrapped the dead boy in it, before drawing her wand and muttering, "Wingardium Leviosa." She moved the invisible body out of the dorm, heading for the hospital wing. Katie, Harry, and some of the teachers followed.

Harry knew the hospital wing better than most of the other parts of Hogwarts, seeing as he had spent rather a lot of time there during his time as a student. It looked the same as it had then. McGonagall laid the body down on a bed at the far end of the wing and removed the invisibility cloak, stowing it back in her robes.

Katie at once set to work trying to identify the cause of the boy's death. Harry watched solemnly for a moment, then turned to McGonagall. "Is there a fireplace I could use quickly?" he asked.

McGonagall raised an eyebrow. "I think I'd rather you remained here right now, Harry. We really could use you, at the very least for moral support."

"I know," Harry said. "I just need to tell Ginny…" His voice trailed off as he glanced at the body. He had sent her an owl last night that he would be spending the night at the school and would come home after breakfast the next morning.

McGonagall nodded. "You may use the one in my office. You remember the password from last night, no doubt."

Harry nodded and turned on his heel. He made his way to the gargoyle and muttered "tabby cat."

"Hello again, Harry," said Dumbledore cheerfully from his portrait, oblivious to what was happening in the school. Harry nodded at him as he rushed to the fireplace. He had chatted with Dumbledore last night while Dudley's son was being sorted. It had been strange talking to Dumbledore without some grave matter to discuss. They had merely talked about Harry's life since the war, an abnormally normal conversation.

He threw some floo powder into the fire and said "home." He then stuck his head into the flames.

Lily was there, sitting on the couch with Persia, the cat that Ginny had bought a few years back. "Daddy!" she exclaimed excitedly.

Just then Ginny came into the room. "Harry," she said, "Aren't you coming home soon?"

Harry looked at his daughter. "Lily, dear, would you mind letting your mum and dad talk for a moment?" Lily nodded reluctantly and left the room.

"What is it?" Ginny asked, her voice becoming quiet as she kneeled down in front of the fire.

"A boy is dead," Harry said gravely. Ginny gasped, her hand coming up to her mouth.

"How?"

"I don't know. Katie's examining him now. I figure I better stay here for a little."

Ginny nodded. "Be careful," she admonished.

"I will. I'll floo later. I love you." Ginny responded in kind, and Harry withdrew his head from the flames. He quickly left the office and returned to the hospital wing.

Katie was the only one left there. McGonagall was probably off somewhere in the castle trying to manage the students with the rest of the teachers.

Katie sat down dejectedly on the bed next to the dead boy's. Harry joined her.

"I'm new at this," Katie muttered. "It's only been a few years since Madam Pomfrey retired, and Professor McGonagall offered me the job here. I had been working at St. Mungo's, but I had been in pediatrics, not working with serious injuries or…this." She gestured hopelessly at the dead boy. "Now that doesn't mean I don't know how to examine him, or what to look for, but I can't find any trace of any cause of death."

"The Killing Curse doesn't leave any trace," Harry said, rubbing his scar gently, although it hadn't bothered him.

"But who in this school could have used that?"

Just then Professor Zarin came into the hospital wing, accompanied by another teacher Harry did not know.

"Have you found anything?" Zarin asked Katie. Harry looked at the other teacher, who was looking at the boy with an expression that seemed to convey curiosity more than anything else.

Katie shook her head somberly. Just then McGonagall entered and asked Katie the same question, and got the same answer.

"The Killing Curse doesn't leave any trace," Harry repeated. The unknown teacher swung around and looked at him, before his gaze moved up to the scar and held there.

McGonagall drew a long, drawn out breath, which turned into a sigh. She addressed Zarin without looking at him. "Get all the veritaserum you have. Every Slytherin student must be interrogated."

Zarin frowned at this, but left without a word.

McGonagall, for the first time that morning, seemed not to know what to do next. She hesitated for a moment, then turned and followed Zarin out of the wing.

Harry turned his attention to the unknown professor, who immediately introduced himself. "Edwin Brant. Defense Against the Dark Arts."

Harry shook his hand. So this was the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Harry knew he was new because McGonagall had come to him about the job this past summer. Harry had seriously considered it. His job as an auror had been rather dull lately. There was hardly any dark magic happening in the world today, at least in Europe. But Harry had declined McGonagall's offer because he knew it would be awkward for his children to have their father as a teacher.

The previous DADA teacher, Havez Shahim, had held the position for eighteen years. Apparently the curse on Defense Against the Dark Arts had ended with the fall of Voldemort. Or, to be honest, with the death of Severus Snape.

At first glance, this man Brant seemed to remind Harry of his first two incompetent DADA teachers, Quirrell and Lockhart. Brant looked miserably inexperienced. He was a short man with a round face. He didn't look very intelligent at all. But McGonagall must have seen something in him for her to give him the position. Either that or she had done so resignedly after Harry had declined.

Deciding he didn't want to talk to this man, Harry turned and left the wing.

* * *

><p>Up in the Gryffindor Common Room, Albus and Rose sat quietly on the floor. Most of the younger students had been left on the floor as all of Gryffindor's students had flooded into the Common Room and the older students took the couch and chairs. Some sat on the tables.<p>

The first-years were against the back wall. There were nine of them in total, as there were four girls besides Rose. Rose was talking to a pretty girl with long black hair named Allison Levin. The other three girls, Becky Bluestein, Leanna Filman, and Nina Holdwin, were huddled in a separate group.

Albus, for his part, was keeping one eye on Neville, who was scanning the Gryffindors nervously. Neville had come up a while back, but hadn't told them much, just that everything was fine and they just had to stay put for a while. He hadn't done a very good job of answering anyone's questions.

Just then Albus's father came in. Harry scanned the room and found James first, who was sitting near the fireplace, casting dark looks at the seventh-years who had taken the couches.

Harry talked to James for a few minutes, then scanned the room again. He found Albus and moved over to him.

"What's going on?" Albus asked immediately.

"Er…it's complicated," Harry said hesitantly.

"We can handle complicated," said Rose.

But just then Victoire appeared. "Uncle Harry."

Harry greeted her.

"What is the problem here?"

Harry had apparently decided that it was okay to tell the Head Girl, because he stood and gestured for her to come with him. They stepped out through the portrait hole, and Neville followed them.

A minute later Victoire came back in. She had her hand covering her mouth, and looked close to tears. Immediately she was swarmed by students asking the obvious question, but it didn't look like she was telling any of them.

Outside, Neville was beginning to babble somewhat as he spoke to Harry. "I'm no good at this. This is my first day as Head of Gryffindor. McGonagall named me it after Professor Shahim left. But I can't handle everyone, not when this is happening."

"Neville," Harry said firmly. "I'm certain you can. McGonagall named you Head of Gryffindor for a reason. You can handle this entire school, trust me."

Neville seemed to calm down a bit. "Thanks Harry."

* * *

><p>It wasn't until dinner that the Gryffindors, Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs were allowed to leave their common rooms and head to the Great Hall. There they gazed eagerly at the somber-looking staff at the Head Table, wondering what had happened. All the teachers were present except Professor Zarin, and the Slytherins were not there either.<p>

Professor McGonagall said nothing. She merely gestured at the tables, and food appeared on the plates.

The students then followed two different strategies. Some ate slowly, carefully watching the teachers for any clues. Others ate quickly, eager to hear what McGonagall would say when dinner was over.

Albus chose the former, keeping an eye on his father. Throughout the afternoon Harry had sat with him and Rose, and James and Victoire had remained close by as well. Harry hadn't really told his sons and nieces anything during this time, just that they were all safe and everything would be uncovered in due time. Victoire had kept her mouth shut as well, though a sad expression had remained on her face throughout the day.

Well, actually, Harry had done something. He told everyone about the separate Defense Against the Dark Arts classes that he himself taught in his fifth year, for anyone that wanted to attend. Then he began going over some basic defense spells with the younger students, such as disarming. Though Harry hadn't said it outright, Albus could tell he didn't think much of the new DADA teacher, Professor Brant.

Albus glanced at Rose, who, to his surprise, was looking over his shoulder at the Ravenclaw table. Following her gaze, he turned and immediately saw who she was looking at. It was Theo Leonus, the Head Boy. Like Victoire, Theo wore a grim expression, and was remaining silent as nearby Ravenclaws barraged him with questions.

After dinner McGonagall, to everyone's disappointment, said very little, and nothing unexpected. She merely gave everyone the usual assurances.

As everyone got up to leave Albus saw Rose's eyes still following the Head Boy. He left the hall quickly, and she ran after him. Albus followed her.

They caught up with him near the library. Albus knew from his mother, who had been Head Girl during her seventh year, that the Head dorms were near the library.

"Er…Mr. Leonus," Rose asked tentatively.

Theo stopped walking, but did not turn around. Rose and Albus exchanged a quick glance.

"What?" Theo asked, finally turning around to face them. His voice was laden with weariness, and was slightly harsh.

"What happened?" Rose asked immediately.

"That's not for me to say," Theo replied.

Rose gestured at Albus, "This is Harry Potter's son," she said. Theo glanced at him curiously. Albus fought the urge to glare at his cousin. "If anyone can help him, he can," Rose continued.

"He's a first-year," Theo replied automatically.

"Harry Potter defeated Voldemort once in his first year at Hogwarts," Rose reminded him.

Theo was silent a long time. Albus could tell Rose's plan of attack was working, as the Head Boy seemed to be on the brink of telling them what was going on. No one could argue when Harry Potter's legacy was brought up.

"A student has been—"

"Theo!"

It was Victoire, who had appeared around the corner behind her cousins. Rose groaned.

"What are you two doing here?" she demanded, in a tone that rather reminded Albus of Professor McGonagall. Not even bothering to wait for their answer, she looked up at Theo. "What would Professor McGonagall say?"

The Head Boy was silent.

"Please, Victoire, just tell us what happened," Rose said.

Victoire moved forward till she was directly in front of Rose, then bent down and placed her hands on her shoulders, bringing their faces level. In a suddenly gentle tone, she said, "It is nothing for you to worry about."

Albus temporarily seemed to have lost his urge to find out what had happened. Rose apparently had too, because she nodded immediately in reply to Victoire.

"Now," the Head Girl said, "you two had best get back up to your common room before a teacher finds you."

* * *

><p>Down in the Great Hall, Harry was also failing to get any helpful information. McGonagall had informed him that every Slytherin student had been interrogated with veritaserum, and none of them knew anything about the supposed murder. He didn't know what to do next. He found himself wishing Hermione was here. She would know what to do. But she was dealing with problems of her own right now, on the other side of the world…<p>

Harry decided he had better head home. There was little more he could do here. He informed McGonagall of his decision.

The headmistress sighed. "Very well. I will leave the floo network open from Gryffindor Common Room for the next thirty minutes." She pulled some floo powder out of a pocket in her robes and gave it to him. He bid his farewell and left.

Albus and Rose had just managed to find the way back to Gryffindor Tower when Harry came up behind them.

"What are you two still doing out here?"

Albus and Rose swung around simultaneously. Albus stared at his father, who was frowning down at him.

"Please, Uncle, we were just trying to find out what had happened," Rose said timidly.

After a moment Harry's frown softened slightly. He kneeled down so that his face was just about level with theirs. "I would have done the same thing," he admitted. "But there are some things that it is better to wait to find out. I don't think you two should be wandering about the castle by yourselves illegally just yet." He looked around and lowered his voice to a whisper. "At the very least not without the invisibility cloak."

"There's no way James is going to let me borrow it," Albus replied.

"He might," Harry said, standing up. "Having a strong urge to solve mysteries is a natural part of being true Gryffindors. He understands that as well as any."

Harry led them back to the common room. There he sought out James.

"Well," he said, addressing both his sons. "I'd better be heading home. I don't need your mother worrying about me as well as you two. I'll give her and Lily your love, shall I?" He looked around and lowered his voice to a whisper only they could hear. "And I strongly advise you two not to go looking for trouble just yet. You'll find out everything in time. As much as you both hate the idea, for the time being you need to stay put. Keep the cloak well hidden, keep it safe."

With these final words and a farewell Harry pulled out the floo powder McGonagall had given him and disappeared into the fire. All the Gryffindors watched the Savior of the Wizarding World leave. They had all felt decidedly safer with him there, in light, or rather in the dark, of whatever the staff was hiding.

Albus and Rose knew instantly what they would do next. The fact that the Slytherins hadn't been at dinner tonight meant that they knew what had happened. After all, whatever had happened had apparently happened in their house. And there was a Slytherin who Albus felt would tell them, and help them solve the mysteries that might follow.


	3. First Classes

**A/N: Hey. I'm glad to see people are enjoying the story so far. Here's another chapter, and probably another coming sooner rather than later. More introductions and character development here, but a little plot near the end.**

**Diclaimer: Same as before.**

**Chapter 3: First Classes**

However, Albus and Rose never got the chance to talk to Scorpius the next day. The teachers, it seemed, had suddenly decided to pretend as though nothing had happened. They began classes with fervor.

The first-year schedule had been redesigned and simplified somewhat. They took eight basic-level classes: Transfiguration, Charms, Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, Muggle Studies, History of Magic, and Flying. The eight classes were spread out over two day cycles, with each day having two classes in the morning and two after lunch, each now an hour and a half rather than just an hour. This gave the first-years both more time in each class to learn the material and more time outside of classes to do homework and study.

Transfiguration proved to be fairly difficult for Albus, but not for Rose. The teacher, Professor Cambian, proved to be as stern as Professor McGonagall had been. Albus and Rose kept quiet during his class, as he was most certainly the type to dock points off of a house for the slightest misdemeanor, as he did when Nina Holdwin let out a piercing shriek after accidently shattering a glass instead of transfiguring it into a plate.

Charms with Ferius Flitwick was a different story. Flitwick was a kind little man who was fairly lenient. Also, Albus proved to have somewhat more of a knack for charms than he did for transfiguration. Levitation of feathers was still the first charm that first-years learned. Albus got his feather into the air fairly easily, second only to Rose in the speed in which he had achieved the spell. They each earned five points for Gryffindor, more than making up for the points Nina had lost in Transfiguration.

The ghost Professor Binns was still teaching History of Magic, and his classes were as dull as ever. Albus found it difficult to keep his attention on the ghost as he listed some of Merlin's more mundane achievements. Jonathan Redford and Robert Everett both fell asleep at their desks, and Binns never noticed, even when Jonathan snored rather loudly.

Muggle Studies looked to be mundane as well. The teacher, Professor Markan, looked impossibly old. His face was so gaunt it looked like nothing more than a skull with skin pulled over it. Thin wisps of white hair appeared here and there from a strange brimless black hat he wore. His eyes however, which bulged out slightly in their sockets, were a piercing blue, like Mad-eye Moody's mad eye. And his voice, which Albus had expected to be old and creaky to match his appearance, was surprisingly strong and, well, young-sounding.

That the Gryffindors had Muggle Studies with the Hufflepuffs was fortunate. Markan seemed to have somewhat of a bias against Muggles. When he said something that sounded wrong, Harry Dursley, who had till then appeared fairly timid, would shamelessly correct him. The first time this happened, Markan looked at the boy silently for a minute. Then he simply smiled and said, "So it would seem, my boy." He opened his mouth to continue on with his lessen, then stopped and turned back to Dursley. "And five points to Hufflepuff for having the courage to say what you believe. Oh if only more people did that. And if only people were willing to listen to other people's beliefs and perhaps even—dare I say it—take them into consideration!"

Markan, Albus later found out from Neville, had once worked for the ministry. He had left angrily after a long argument with officials as well as the minister himself. Neville didn't know for sure what the argument was about, but Markan had since preached that the ministry was corrupt and wouldn't allow wizards to follow and act on their own beliefs. The ministry, Markan said, was limiting the wizard population to living as it saw fit for them to, having them follow whatever beliefs the ministry laid out for them to follow. This, according to Markan, was how the flawed New Order had developed after the fall of Lord Voldemort's regime. People, it seemed, were far nobler when they had something to terrify them.

Neville thought that Markan rather reminded him of Xenophilius Lovegood. But once when Neville had mentioned the Quibbler to Markan, Markan had raised an eyebrow and turned away.

Professor Zarin, the Potions Master, Head of Slytherin House, and uncle of Alexander Zarin, appeared to be a rather unpleasant man. His voice was a low drawl and he maintained strict discipline in his class (of course, he favored his Slytherin students). He did not, however, appear quite as bad as Rose's father had said Severus Snape was as a teacher.

Potions was the only class that the Gryffindors had with the Slytherins. Albus and Rose spotted Scorpius among his housemates, but it did not appear as though they would get a chance to talk to him. He was across the room, following Zarin's discourse with mild interest.

Zarin then had the students try their first potion, a simple one that would cause a person's hair to turn purple for one hour. According to Zarin, actually, the potion could be strengthened with certain ingredients and techniques so that the person's hair would remain purple indefinitely and even be immune to any attempts to dye it, but only one odd soul had ever bothered to do this.

Albus struggled with his potion, which for some reason remained reddish brown when it was supposed to achieve a deep purple color. Rose seemed to have somewhat more success, as did Scorpius across the room.

Albus's attention was drawn away slightly by something he found somewhat interesting. There seemed to be a great deal of tension between Zarin and his nephew. Alexander was the first to achieve the purple potion, and he had beckoned his uncle over, looking pleased with himself. Professor Zarin had merely said "well done" curtly and waved his wand, vanishing the contents of the cauldron.

By the end of the class only Alexander had achieved the potion properly, and the students left with the homework of writing an essay on where they had failed in making the potion. Alexander, rather than being freed from homework by his success, was forced to write an even longer essay on how he managed to do it correctly. He accepted his uncle's demands with a frown and a curt nod.

Defense Against the Dark Arts with Professor Brant, as Harry Potter had predicted, was a joke. The class moved so slowly that it was as though Brant was intentionally slowing it down. The Gryffindors relished the opportunity to show off, or at least attempt to show off, the spells Harry had taught them.

Brant, according to Neville, had worked for the ministry as recently as the previous year, and had left to pursue the position when Professor Shahim left. Of course, he wasn't McGonagall's first choice (Albus knew who was), but it seemed people skilled in defense were becoming harder to find, as it had been nineteen years since there had been any real trouble. Neville had left this topic of conversation with the parting words that he had no doubt Brant still had ties to the ministry, and to keep an eye out for any strange agenda he might have. Neville apparently seemed to accept some of Markan's anti-ministry claims.

The Gryffindor and Ravenclaw first-years marched down to Neville's greenhouse for Herbology, the first of two consecutive classes that they shared together. Neville, or Professor Longbottom as Albus and Rose had to call him here, got right down to business, showing them a large plant whose roots were submerged in a pool of what looked a bit like snot. The fluid, which it turned out the plant produced, served as an antidote for many magical poisons. Albus figured he'd prefer a bezoar.

Albus had been looking forward to the flying classes since long before getting on the train. He already knew how to fly, having been taught by his mother before his father had thought he was old enough to learn. The fact that he was a natural at it was hardly surprising. Professor Hawkeye seemed very excited to be teaching the son of two of the greatest players in the history of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team, and was mildly put off by the fact that Albus already knew how to do everything.

Rose, however, seemed a bit of a basket-case when it came to flying, just as her mother had been. She struggled to get off the ground, and Professor Hawkeye paid her little attention as he watched Albus with excitement.

Across the field, Albus noted that one Ravenclaw seemed to be just as much at ease in the air as he was. Albus recalled his name, Sean Anderson, the first name that had been called in the Sorting.

* * *

><p>When Albus and Rose entered the Great Hall for dinner after their second day of classes, the Slytherins were there, though they appeared just as silent as they had been at the previous meals. Albus and Rose spotted Scorpius sitting near Alexander. He looked glum like the rest of the Slytherins.<p>

As they took their seats at the Gryffindor table, Rose nudged Albus and pointed at the Head Table. McGonagall and Zarin were both absent.

"Where do you reckon the headmistress is," Albus asked Jonathan Redford, who was on his other side.

Jonathan shrugged.

"It must have something to do with whatever the staff was covering up on Monday," interjected Robert Everett from across the table.

"And still is covering up," said Rose.

Through dinner Albus kept an eye on the Slytherin table. Alexander was chatting away with a few others around him, unlike many of his housemates who were eating silently.

As the meal was ending Rose said to Albus, "Do you want to visit Hagrid before we go back to the tower?" She had a light in her eye that instantly convinced Albus to agree.

Hagrid came over to visit the Potters and the Weasleys every so often. He was always a welcome treat, with his tales of wild magical beasts like thestrals, centaurs, and giants.

Albus and Rose caught up with the half-giant as he was making his way back down to his cabin near the Forbidden Forest. He greeted them happily and they accompanied him back to the cabin.

Inside they declined Hagrid's immediate offer of rock cakes, citing the fact that they had just eaten dinner. The large hound Fang lay dozing in front of the massive fireplace, though no fire was present.

"So, how do yer like yer classes?" Hagrid asked them immediately.

"Well, flying is awesome of course," said Albus immediately.

Rose frowned slightly at this. "Transfiguration and Charms seem fine too," she said.

"So does Muggle Studies, which honestly came as a bit of a surprise given what mum said," Albus stated.

"Yea, Professor Markan is an interestin' bloke isn't he? He's a right-good speaker for the free world he is, though his hatred of the ministry may be a bit over-zealous."

"It seems all the teachers admire him," said Rose.

"Of course they do. He's a brilliant wizard who left the ministry and came to Hogwarts. How could they not? He's brave enough ter stand up to anything the ministry can throw at us, which will be a big help should they try ter interfere here again like they did with that toad Umbridge all those years ago."

"You sound as though you think its going to happen again," Rose noted.

"Well of course the Ministry's bound ter try something, what with what's happened here. Why, the Headmistress and Professor Zarin are over there right now tryin' ter…" Hagrid caught himself, looking at the first-years. "Er…well, never you mind, you youngsters. Got ter keep yer focus on yer classes, now. Why don't you two head on up to the castle now, its gettin' near dark. But please stop by some other time, yer hear?"

Rose nodded and stood up, knowing that was all the information they were going to get tonight. Albus stood up beside her somewhat reluctantly. "We'll be sure to, Hagrid," Rose said sweetly. "It was great seeing you again."

On the way back to the castle Rose said, "Well, we know a little more now. Whatever it is that has happened, the Ministry's going to react to it, and it doesn't sound like it's going to be good. And Professor McGonagall and Professor Zarin are over there now trying to do something. I suppose they're trying to stop whatever the Ministry's going to do."

"Should we tell James about this?" Albus asked.

Rose thought for a moment. "No, I don't think we should tell anyone just yet. We still don't know what it is that's happened here."

* * *

><p>Before Albus knew it, the first week was nearly completed. The first-years sat together at lunch on Friday, chatting about their second round of Potions and DADA classes that morning. Jonathan Redford now sported purple hair, having sampled his potion when he thought he had gotten it right. Unfortunately he had been mistaken, and, after docking fifteen points from Gryffindor for sampling a potentially dangerous potion, Professor Zarin had informed him that given the faults in the potion he had brewed the purple hair would last for about twelve hours.<p>

"Are you going to go down to the Quidditch Pitch tomorrow to watch the team tryouts?" Becky Bluestein asked Robert Everett.

"I plan to, yeah," Robert replied.

"I'm going to try out," Jonathan announced.

"Are you mad?" Franky Truit asked him. "First-Years never make the house teams."

"Harry Potter did," said Jonathan.

"And you think you're as good as Harry Potter?" Franky asked.

Albus hunched down in his seat, turning away and trying to ignore the conversation.

"I'm going to go for seeker like he did," Jonathan declared.

"Okay now I know you're mad," said Franky. "Do you really think you could possibly beat out James Potter for the position?" The Gryffindor seeker last year had graduated, and James was heavily favored to replace him this year at the position. The talk amongst the older Gryffindors was that no one else was even planning to go against him for the position.

Albus tried to listen to Rose's conversation with Allison Levin, but he was completely at a loss as to what they were discussing. It seemed that Allison was, if perhaps not quite as smart as Rose was, just as anxious to learn as she was. He had a feeling those two would be come very good friends, and felt mildly anxious about losing some of Rose's company.

"Like my dad always says," persisted Jonathan, "anything is possible."

"Anything is possible if you're a Potter," said Franky, "not if you're someone else."

Utterly failing to be able to drown out this conversation, Albus quickly muttered an excuse and got up, hurrying from the Great Hall. He was in such a rush that he accidently ran smack into someone in the corridor, who happened to be his brother.

"Whoa there sport," said James, reaching down and helping Albus to his feet. "Where you off to in such a hurry?"

"How do you deal with it?" Albus exclaimed.

"Deal with what?"

"Being dad's son? Being a Potter?"

James grimaced slightly. "I usually just ignore it. You'll learn. Everyone here is so fascinated by everything dad has done. But they don't really know anything about him. They don't know who he really is."

"But everyone expects so much of us," said Albus.

James bent over and brought himself eye level with Albus. "What matters is what you expect of yourself." Then he stood up straight again. "Now scram, before I get caught being nice to my little brother," he said with a wink, then strode around Albus and into the Hall.

Albus stood there for a moment, pondering his brother's words. James could be very cavalier about some things, much more-so than Albus. Albus wasn't sure he could ignore all the talk about Harry Potter around him.

"Albus?"

Albus turned to find Rose and Allison standing behind him. He appreciated the looks of concern on both their faces. "I'm okay," he said.

Rose grasped her cousin's arm, squeezing it gently. "It's not easy being his son."

"Neither is being his niece, I imagine," said Albus.

Rose looked down briefly with a grimace. "We'll deal with it. Just like James does."

Albus nodded.

"Come on," said Rose, pulling him along, "we've got Herbology now."

Herbology seemed to pass by in a blur for Albus, as he was so eager to get to Flying and then have the weekend free. He was quite certain he didn't get anything out of Neville's lecture about some odd plant that had mildly hypnotic effects.

* * *

><p>Professor Hawkeye advertised the tryouts for the next day, though he reiterated that first-years were advised against trying out since they never, "or almost never," the professor corrected himself with a glance at Albus, make the teams. By then Franky had convinced Jonathan not to try out. The purple-haired boy struggled a little more with his broom this lesson than he had the first one, but was still the second one into the air, after Albus.<p>

Rose still couldn't get into the air. Neither could Nina Holdwin, and the two stood there red-faced over their brooms while the other girls hovered above them. Allison looked down sympathetically at them, while Becky and Leanna couldn't stop giggling at the failed attempts.

Across the field Albus saw Sean Anderson fly around above his housemates. He was wearing a Ravenclaw practice shirt. Albus figured he was going to try out for the team.

Behind Sean, over by the castle, Albus spotted someone else. Alexander Zarin sat against the castle wall, surrounded by a group of Slytherin first-years. Scorpius was not among them.

Albus decided to fly over to them. It was unlikely he could get information from Alexander as easily as he could get it from Scorpius, but he figured it was worth a try.

"Showing off your flying skills, Potter?" Alexander said mockingly. "As much of a showoff as your dad, you are."

"Don't the Slytherins have Herbology now?" Albus asked, doing his best to ignore the mention of his father.

"Ha!" Alexander laughed. "You think I'm going to go to the class of that little sod Professor Longbottom? No way! That professor is clearly a fag."

Albus felt his blood begin to boil. "He's married," he replied curtly.

"Oh, right, to that dumb little witch who works in the Leaky Cauldron. She's an Abbott girl isn't she? What a pathetic little family, the Abbotts." Alexander smirked. "Ha! I'm sure it's just a cover. Professor Longbottom is a fag." At this the other little Slytherins around Alexander chuckled.

Albus thought seriously about swinging around on his broom and smacking Alexander with the butt of it, but he refrained. Instead he asked, "Where's Scorpius?"

Alexander frowned with surprise. "Malfoy? Ha! He's sitting in class attentively like a good little boy, of course." Alexander leaned in, dropping his voice to conspiratorial tones. "Very much his father's son he is, if you know what I mean."

Albus frowned as well. "I don't know what you mean."

Alexander leaned back again. "Ha! Everyone that's worth talking to in the Wizarding World knows that Draco Malfoy is also a fag. Stupid coward couldn't even hurt a fly if he were told to. Why, he and Professor Longbottom must have gotten it on during their years here at Hogwarts together." The other Slytherins chuckled some more.

Albus didn't bother to hide his surprise. His eyebrows shot up.

"You're clearly not worth talking to, Potter. Off you go."

Albus frowned, but turned on his broom and flew back to the class. This was something he wanted to talk to Rose about.

He did so at dinner, pulling Rose's attention away from whatever her and Allison had been discussing this time, and telling her everything Alexander had said. Rose frowned deeply when he mentioned what he had said about Neville, and then her eyebrows shot up when he mentioned what he had said about Draco Malfoy.

"So then Draco Malfoy is on the outs with the old Slytherin crowd," said Rose.

Albus nodded. "Either that or Zarin's family runs in a crowd that's even worse than other Slytherins."

Rose frowned. "You don't think Zarin's grandfather might also have been a Death Eater, do you?"

Albus shrugged. "A lot of the Slytherins have grandfathers who were Death Eaters. And many of their fathers wanted to be Death Eaters too."

"But McGonagall would never have hired Professor Zarin if he were the son of a Death Eater."

Albus hadn't thought about that.

"Albus, if you don't mind, I want to talk to your dad about this."

Albus frowned. "My dad?"

Rose nodded. "He's an auror. If there's anyone we can ask about the old Death Eater crew, it's him."

Albus maintained his frown, but nodded. "Okay."

At the Head Table, a single brown owl dropped down and landed in front of Headmistress McGonagall. She took the letter and looked at the envelope, frowning. Then she stowed it in her robes and got up, leaving out the back entrance of the Great Hall.

Only once she was up in her office did she take the envelope out of her robes. She carefully opened it and took out the letter. Unfolding it delicately, she scanned the page. It was fortunate she had been standing in front of her chair as she read it, for after reading the short letter she collapsed heavily into the chair, covering her face with her hand.


	4. Quidditch Tryouts

**A/N: Hey all. Here's Chapter 4. Not much to say here, so just enjoy.**

**Diclaimer: Same as before.**

**Chapter 4: Quidditch Tryouts**

The sky was bright blue, dotted only by the occasional puffy white cloud. Birds flitted to and fro, chirping pleasantly. The leaves of the Forbidden Forest rustled gently, spreading their own music out across the grounds of the school. Rose and Allison skipped across the grass towards the Quidditch Pitch. Allison laughed loudly as Rose told her about her cousin's obsession with making the team this year.

In the stands Albus sat with Robert and Franky. Becky, Leanna and Nina sat in front of them. Above them soared the candidates for the positions on the Gryffindor squad, circling the pitch. In the center hovered the team captain, Nina's brother Nathan, whom Becky and Leanna were squealing over. Nina sat beside them silently, giving no indication of whether she disliked that the other girls were going on about her brother like that.

As Rose and Allison joined them, Albus smiled up at his cousin, but as she greeted the others he couldn't help but cast a quick frown at Allison, who sat down in front of him next to Becky. The look went unnoticed, as Allison was already listening to Becky squeal about Nathan, and was looking up at the captain in agreement.

Franky leaned forward and spoke across Robert and Albus to Rose. "Where's Jonathan?"

Rose shrugged. "He didn't come with us. We didn't see him back up in the Common Room."

The boys looked around for the last of the Gryffindor first-years, but didn't spot him anywhere.

James flew in low above them. "Hey guys!" he shouted. The first-years waved back at him.

"James!" came another voice. The first-years all turned and looked as Daryl Finnigan and Dom Petrino came up beside them, along with three Gryffindor third-year girls, one of whom Albus immediately recognized as Laura Corner, one of James' oldest friends. Though Harry Potter and Michael Corner hadn't been particularly close during their Hogwarts years, since they had a tendency to like and date the same girls, they had become friendly afterwards. Michael had gone to work for the Ministry in the Department of Magical Industries and Economics, in preparation for taking the reins of the family company, and he had helped Harry shut down quite a few illegal black market operations. James and Laura had come to Hogwarts together, along with Shane and Daryl.

Shane flew up beside James. He was going for the position of keeper, and was also fairly confident that he would get it. The previous keeper for Gryffindor, Nick Johnson, had been one of the team's best, probably the best since Oliver Wood, and so no one else had ever gone for the position during the five years that he had held the post. Now that he was graduated, the position was completely open, and Shane had as good a shot as any.

"Well well, if it isn't my brother's wannabe," said one of the girls beside Laura. That had to be Pearl Johnson, Nick's sister.

"Nice to see you too, Pearl," replied Shane.

"Make him proud," said Pearl.

Shane nodded and winked at her.

"So are you still the only one for seeker, James?" asked Daryl.

"Actually, turns out I'm not," James answered with a laugh.

"Really?"

James pointed over to a small figure who was struggling a little on his broom, looking around nervously.

Franky stood up. "I don't believe it."

The first-years all stood and watched as Jonathan slowly entered the mix of candidates for the team. Becky and Leanna giggled madly, while Albus and Robert each grimaced. Franky merely shook his head and sat back down.

The tryout began. Nathan first ran drills with the candidates for each position. The chasers flew in and tried to score on the keepers, then tried to steal the quaffle from each other, and finally worked on pass accuracy while flying through an obstacle course of floating pilons. The beaters were tested. Nathan also had moving targets zooming to and fro, with the beaters trying to smack bludgers at them.

James floated high above, watching the trials and awaiting his turn. Opposite him, Jonathan stared at him nervously. James leaned back on his broom and cast the first-year an easy smile.

Finally Nathan released the snitch. Jonathan started to go after it, then hesitated, looking at James. James merely floated there, looking back at him.

"Come on," Nathan yelled up to them. "Go for it!" Jonathan took off after the snitch. James continued to watch him. The first-year certainly had some gall. As the snitch made its wild twists and turns Jonathan did his best to match it.

But the first-year left a lot to be desired in terms of managing his speed, and James had a feeling he wouldn't be able to catch the snitch even if he gave him all day to do it.

"Sorry buddy, hate to do this to you," James muttered. With that he dropped into a dive and zoomed into the chase. He quickly caught up to Jonathan and passed him. It wasn't long before he had the snitch in his hand.

In the stands Dom clapped loudly, along with Pearl and the other third-year girl, Selina. Daryl and Laura both looked more sympathetic towards Jonathan. Robert sat down heavily beside Franky, who had covered his eyes, while Albus didn't know whether to feel happy for his brother or bad for Jonathan. Becky and Leanna continued giggling madly.

Franky turned on Albus. "Why did your brother have to do it like that! He didn't even have to try to beat Jonathan. Why did he let Jonathan go ahead like that."

Albus shrugged. He now absolutely felt bad for Jonathan.

Rose turned to Albus. "I don't think your brother meant for that to look as bad as it did. He was probably just waiting to see how Jonathan would do."

"Oh sure he was," said Franky sarcastically. "Of course, he was giving Jonathan an actual opportunity to beat him, wasn't he? Because he didn't want to win that position so badly. Not at all."

Rose glared at him. Albus simply watched as his brother circled the field, clutching the snitch. The look on his face showed the faintest hint of regret amidst the elation.

Elsewhere in the stands, the other Gryffindors cheered. Eventually Laura and Daryl started to clap slowly as well, though they still felt bad for the first-year. They watched him circle the field, flying lower and lower over the stands. Then when he reached the far end of the field Laura stopped clapping, staring at the only two people sitting in the stands over there.

These two were not clapping. They sat back and watched the others cheer, smirking. Laura saw James spin on his broom, staring down at them, and they stared back up at him, challengingly. When their Gryffindor badges caught the sunlight, they appeared in Laura's eyes to flash green.

Marcus and Michaela Black were new to the school, transfers from the United States of America. The twins had both been sorted into Gryffindor, but based on the first week Laura suspected they both should have been in Slytherin. In fact, Laura suspected that they hadn't even been officially sorted at all, that they had simply been placed into Gryffindor because it had the least number of students in third year.

They walked around with heads held high, glaring at the people around them, as though feeling infinitely superior to them. They rarely spoke but to each other, and, at least in Michaela's case in the dorms, whenever they spoke to anyone else it was never to make pleasant comments.

Granted it had only been a week, but Laura already knew that she hated them, and the other Gryffindors didn't like them much either. Well, the guys were mostly indifferent, except for James, whom Michaela had decided to piss off quite quickly.

It had happened in the Common Room a few days before, when Michaela, with her shoulder-length black hair and brown eyes, had been making fun of Laura, who had long, very-light-brown hair and blue eyes, calling her "a barbie stuck somewhere between blonde and brunette," in that horrid American accent of hers.

James had stepped in to defend Laura, and Michaela had turned on him. "Well if it isn't the son of the famous Harry Potter. Trying to be your daddy's little boy, Jamie? Trying to be the hero?"

James was struck silent. This had been his first dealing with her, and he certainly hadn't been expecting such insolence.

"How cute," Michaela went on mockingly. "Little Jamie wants to be just like his daddy."

"Enough!" James yelled. "Who do you think you are?"

Michaela simply smiled, not moved in the least by his anger. "Someone who is not impressed." With that she had stepped around him and Laura and kept walking, right on through the portrait hole.

Now as James flew above her he glared down at her, and she glared right back at him.

The Ravenclaws were beginning to enter the stadium. They had reserved the pitch for their own tryout immediately after the Gryffindors. Albus watched as the blue and bronze flooded the field and the stands. Sean Anderson stepped onto the field, flanked by what looked to be an older version of himself. Nathan flew down towards the incoming Ravenclaws and dismounted, stepping forward and shaking hands with the older Anderson, who then introduced Sean to the Gryffindor captain.

The Gryffindor third-years were moving towards the exit, and Albus saw Daryl gently shove one of the incoming Ravenclaws. The first-years got up in a group and departed as well, taking care to avoid the incoming strangers.

At the far end of the field, Michaela and Marcus remained seated, making no move to get up and leave with their fellow Gryffindors.

Marcus glanced at his sister. "Do you want to go?" he asked.

Michaela thought for a moment. "No. We've got nothing better to do."

So they stayed put, as the Ravenclaws assembled in the center of the field to begin their tryout. Things appeared much more organized here then they had been at the start of the Gryffindor tryout, with all the Ravenclaws mounting their brooms and lifting into the air in unison.

Marcus leaned forward and clapped his hands once. "Now this is a team," he said. Michaela simply glanced at him, indifferent.

There was a sound like a squeak from off to Michaela's left. The twins turned to see a girl standing there awkwardly, staring at them. She was pretty, with long brown hair and a soft face surrounding a pair of intense brown eyes. She was obviously very shy, and the way her robes were gathered around her it looked as though she were dwarfed by them, though Michaela guessed that if she let them hang freely they would look just fine. She was clutching a blue notebook tightly to her chest.

"Can I sit with you?" the girl asked very quickly.

"Sure," the twins replied in unison.

The girl sat down uncomfortably next to Michaela, watching her house's team in the air. "My name is Sarah," she said quickly.

"I'm Michaela," Michaela replied, holding out her hand. The girl stared at it for a moment before reaching out and grasping it awkwardly for a second.

"And I'm Marcus," added Marcus, simply waving at her.

The tryout began, the players moving in organized formations. The captain took his position as keeper at the the hoops directly in front of the twins and Sarah, and the candidates for chaser zoomed at him in turn, while others played defense, trying to block and steal the quaffle. The beaters, in the meantime, took aim with the bludgers, smacking solid shots at the chasers.

"These guys are good," Marcus commented. "They seem much better than the Gryffindors."

"My brother's the captain this year," said Sarah, pointing up at the keeper. "We only had one seventh-year last year, who graduated. He was the old captain, the seeker. Other than that we'll have the exact same team as last year."

"I'm surprised so many came to the tryout then, if they're competing against the veterans," said Marcus.

Sarah shrugged. "Mostly they're just doing it for experience. Like my little brother." She pointed to another player in the air, who looked younger than everyone else out there. "He's a first-year. First-Years never make the teams... well, except for Harry Potter, of course." Michaela frowned at the name, but Sarah went on. "He's just doing it so that he knows what it is like, so that next year, when there will be two spots open at chaser, he'll be ready to go for one of them."

The twins watched as the little first-year zoomed towards his brother and shot the quaffle, which his brother tipped away. He looked quite adept on a broom.

"And what about you?" Michaela asked. "Do you play?"

"I play with them at home for fun," Sarah replied. "But I don't enjoy it as much as they do. Our dad used to play for the Tutshill Tornadoes, and now he's an announcer for Magicast, so quidditch has always been a major sport in our family."

"Cool," said Marcus. They continued to watch the Ravenclaws play.

* * *

><p>Inside the castle, Albus and Rose were on their way back up to Gryffindor Tower when they caught sight of Scorpius walking down an adjacent corridor. They ran to catch up with him. "Scorpius!" Albus called.<p>

He stopped and looked back at them. "Hi."

"How are you?" asked Rose as they caught up with him, for the sake of politeness.

He started walking again. "Okay."

They kept up alongside of him. Albus wanted to get right to the point, but wasn't sure how to pose the question. Rose kept beating around the bush. "How was your first week of classes?"

"Probably about the same as yours."

"What happened in Slytherin house on Monday?" Albus blurted out. Rose glared at him.

Scorpius stopped walking, not turning to look at either of the Gryffindors, who stopped a pace ahead of him. "I'm not allowed to talk about it." Albus and Rose glanced at each other. "And even if I could I wouldn't want to." With that he started walking again, more briskly this time.

Albus and Rose let him go. With each dead end they were becoming more and more aware of the seriousness of the mystery occurrence. This was not just some silly little puzzle to be solved.

* * *

><p>They got much more of an idea of just how serious it was at the end of dinner that night, when Headmistress McGonagall stood up to address the Hall. The look on her face was grim.<p>

"Students," she began, looking around the Great Hall. "You are the heart and soul of our school. Without you, there would be no Hogwarts." She looked down for a moment before continuing. "The chief necessity of our school, even more than making sure you all receive top-grade magical educations, is making sure that you all are safe. Recently..." She paused. "...it has come to the attention of the Ministry of Magic that there may be a threat within this school."

Hushed whispers spread like a wildfire across the hall, emanating from the Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables. The Slytherins remained silent, simply glancing at each other.

"This threat, if it does exist, threatens even the very lives of the students here." At this point the room fell silent once more. "It is therefore the recommendation of the Minister of Magic that Hogwarts be closed for one week, so that the Ministry may conduct investigations into the validity of this supposed threat to your safety."

The Great Hall exploded. Gryffindors, Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs stood up in shock, staring at one another and shooting various exclamations to and fro. Even the Slytherins exchanged glances of surprise. Albus and Rose stared at each other, eyes wide. James was gesturing about madly, but his words were lost in the cacophony.

Surprisingly, the biggest reactions came from the Head Table. Most of the teachers stood and started shouting questions at the Headmistress. From the stunned expression of Roal Zarin at one end to the quivering and wild gestures of Ferius Flitwick at the other, the teachers showed that even if they knew what had occurred they were still surprised by the Ministry's decision.

The Headmistress remained standing, and after several minutes the noise died down once more. "Tomorrow at exactly one o'clock in the afternoon, the Hogwarts Express will arrive here. It will not leave until every single student is on board, having first undergone a security screening by our caretaker Mr. Filch and a few of our trusted professors. Your parents and guardians have all been informed of the school's temporary closing, and will all be there to pick you up from King's Cross Station."

Silence reigned, as everyone waited for the Headmistress to say something.

"That is all," she simply said, then turned and strode out the back entrance of the Hall.

The Great Hall exploded once more.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe it!" Franky exclaimed. "What could possibly have happened that would cause the Ministry to close the school?"<p>

None of the other boys answered immediately. They were all busy packing up their trunks.

"My dad said that there have always been issues between Hogwarts and the Ministry," said Robert.

"Well yes," Franky replied. "But this is a bit much simply for 'issues,' don't you think?" The other boys all agreed.

Albus didn't voice his thoughts. Being the son of who he was, he had heard about some very strange things happening at Hogwarts. But never during his father's era had the Ministry gone so far as to close the school, even for just a week. Whatever this was was something very extreme.

* * *

><p>All the way over in London, Professor Markan walked briskly down a Muggle street, an illusion charm cast on his robes to make them look like Muggle clothing. He had left the school in secret immediately after the Headmistress's speech, recognizing that the commotion it caused was the best opportunity for him to get away. He had quickly gone down to Hogsmeade and apparated here.<p>

He stopped walking in front of a dusty old department store called Purge and Dowse, Ltd. The signs along the storefront said "Closed for Refurbishment." Markan always chuckled to himself that it never seemed to occur to the Muggles that these same signs had been up for ages, and that there didn't appear to be any "refurbishment" going on. At least, not in any sense that they knew of.

Along the storefront the windows displayed hideously ugly dummies wearing fashions that were at least thirty years out of date. The sight often caused the Muggles that would usually be inclined to window-shop to make a point of looking in a different direction whenever they came along this way.

Markan leaned back against the window in front of a female dummy wearing a green nylon pinafore dress. Looking around to make sure there were no observers bold enough to look in the direction of the store, he quietly muttered, "Professor Dimitrius Markan, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." No one noticed as the dummy behind him nodded its head ever so slightly. Nor did any Muggles notice as Markan suddenly disappeared right through the window.

St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries was always busy. Though the Second War had long since ended, people were always doing stupid things to get themselves hurt. Wizards were no exception, although they had the capacities to hurt themselves much more severely and still come out of the hospital perfectly fine.

Markan approached the Welcome Witch, and when she looked up at him he nodded. She discreetly passed him a white, featureless key card. He took it and turned, going down the hall on the far right. Three doors from the end of the hall he swiped the card in a lock, and the door clicked and opened. He stepped in and shut the door carefully behind him, listening to the click of the lock resealing.

He was in a featureless white room, no larger than two broom closets pressed front-to-back. Stepping into the very center of the room, he pulled out his wand. "Melnoteous Decindorum," he said, waving his wand at the floor beneath his feet. The floor suddenly turned liquid, and he shot down through it like an arrow, landing on the floor below.

He was in another hallway, this one much more dimly lit than the ones above. He quickly strode to the end of the hall, where a guard sat in a chair outside of a plain gray door. Markan recognized the guard immediately. He was Angus Kemp, a long-time Ministry Security official, annoyingly loyal to Ministry policy.

Kemp stood as Markan approached. "The Headmistress sent you this time, did she?" he said with a sneer. Markan nodded stiffly, only sparing the man a quick glance. Kemp stared at him for another moment, then muttered "Very well." He waved his wand at the door, and the lock opened. Markan opened the door and shut it tightly behind him.

"Silencio," he whispered, waving his wand at the door. Then he turned to the bed in the room.

Jonas Zabini looked as though he were asleep. The body was stripped from the waste up, the bedsheets covering the lower half. The body bore no marks, nothing to indicate that something terrible had happened to it.

"It doesn't even look as if it has begun to decompose," Markan muttered. Indeed, the body still looked to be in perfect form, despite having been lifeless for nearly a week. This was very strange indeed.

Markan approached until he was standing at the bedside, leaning over the body. Raising his wand above it, he aimed at the boy's chest. "Ascher Zech Bini Veshik Zar Anatumo." A bluish-purple aura appeared around the body, and symbols of the same color appeared across the torso, as if floating up from beneath the surface of the skin. Markan studied each of the runes at they floated across the skin.

These were not standard arithmancy figures, they were something different. After studying each of the runes to the point of having memorized them, Markan waved his wand, and the body returned to normal. He then turned and left the room without a word, swinging the door shut behind him.


	5. The Minister

**A/N: Hey all. Lots of background here, to begin filling in the 19 year gap between the last chapter of DH and the Epilogue. I didn't follow much of what JK Rowling said on the side in order to tie everything together neatly, for the sake of plot. Most notably, Hermione's story after the war is very different, and I have a feeling some people are not going to like me for it, but it's necessary. Also, I changed the jobs around a bit, mostly with respect to time. Harry is not head auror and Kingsley is not minister, though both of those could change eventually. Ginny worked only briefly for the Prophet, for reasons to be explained in the chapter.**

**Diclaimer: All the characters you recognize don't belong to me. Their backstories don't belong to me except where I changed them. The objects you recognize don't belong to me either.**

**Chapter 5: The Minister**

Albus and Rose sat on the train once more, far sooner than they had thought they would, except of course in Rose's worst nightmares, in which she got expelled. Allison and Jonathan sat with them, while Robert, Franky, Becky, Leanna and Nina sat across the isle. The Gryffindors had one large conversation going back and forth across the train, shooting through every topic from professional quidditch to the Hogwarts ghosts. They had met Nearly Headless Nick that very morning, bidding the students farewell on their unexpected return home.

"Don't worry, I'll keep this school safe for you," Nick said valiantly. He had been talking more like this ever since the Battle of Hogwarts and the end of the Second War. Students said behind his back that his admiration of Harry Potter had developed into a "Harry Potter complex." He certainly wouldn't be the only witch or wizard, dead or alive, that that had happened to in the past twenty years.

Franky looked over at Albus. "So where do you live? Is it a mansion?"

Albus frowned, knowing that Franky was assuming that he lived in a mansion because of who is father was. "It's a large house," Albus conceded. "I don't know if I would call it a mansion. We live in Kensington."

Robert frowned. "That's a Muggle district."

Albus nodded.

"One of the most affluent in London," Leanna added excitedly.

Albus nodded again, this time adding in a bit of a shrug.

"Predictable," muttered Franky.

Just then black smoke erupted on both sides of the isle, enveloping all of the first-years. The girls all let out high pitched squeaks, and Jonathan gave a squeak of his own.

It took Albus only a second to realize who was responsible for this. James had taken this unexpected train ride as an opportunity to play the first prank of the year on his little brother, when Albus would least expect it.

Albus quickly got up and stormed over to the next train car, muttering to himself. "James! James Sirius Potter!" he yelled.

"What?" James asked innocently. He was engaged in a game of Reusable Hangman with Shane, Daryl and Dom.

"Darkness Powder!" Albus yelled. By now every student in the train car was looking at him.

"James!" came another voice. Albus looked over to see Victoire sitting near the far end of the car. "You didn't."

James shrugged, covering the lower half of his face with his hand.

"Albus, come here," said Victoire, beckoning.

Albus complied, walking the length of the train car, while every other student there watched him.

Once he was standing in front of the Head Girl she lowered her voice to conspiratorial tones. "What say we show James that he's not the only nephew of George Weasley on this train."

Across from her sat two more of Albus's cousins. Dominique Weasley, Victoire's younger sister, and Molly Weasley, the eldest daughter of Uncle Percy, sat side by side. They were almost always together, and their fellow fifth-years called them the yin-yang. Dominique, who had black hair like her grandfather, Monsieur Delacour, had a rebellious streak, while Molly, who had the same blonde hair as her mother, Audrey Weasley, was prim and proper.

"Well, he's close enough," said Albus, "since you three are nieces, not nephews. So it's just me."

The Head Girl raised her eyebrows. "And Lewis."

"Oh... right... Lewis."

Molly chuckled softly, and Dominique nudged her.

"Well, what do you want to do?" Albus asked his eldest cousin.

Victoire winked at him, patting the seat beside her.

Back in the car with the first-years, sitting right by the exit which Albus had stormed through to shout at his brother, Michaela Black glanced at her twin brother and at Sarah Anderson, who sat across from them. "So daddy's little boy Jamie likes to play pranks, does he?" Marcus raised his eyebrows at her, and Sarah looked at her blankly.

* * *

><p>The train ride almost managed to end without further incident. But it hadn't quite made it to King's Cross when the yin-yang came sauntering up to the third-year boys.<p>

"Hi, Jamie," said Dominique, sitting down next to Shane, or rather practically on top of him. Molly sat equally close to Daryl, while Dom sat there internally fuming at himself for having chosen the window seat.

"Hi, girls," replied James a little warily.

The girls said nothing for a moment, watching the little wooden man pause on the steps up to the gallows.

"What can we do for you?" James pressed, his suspicious gaze passing from one cousin to the other.

At this Molly broke into a fit of giggles, and Dominique glared at her. Daryl and Shane glanced at each other sheepishly.

"Nothing," said Molly, her voice still full of laughter. "Absolutely nothing." Beside her, Daryl frowned slightly.

"Very well then," said James, furiously trying to figure out what these two were up to. "Do you want to play?"

"No," replied Dominique in a bored voice, looking around the train car. "We just wanted to rest our legs for a bit." And with that the yin-yang got up and walked steadily back over to Victoire and Albus.

James watched them go, frowning. Nevertheless the third-years went back to their game.

* * *

><p>Finally the train's horn sounded and the train entered the tunnel leading to Platform 9 34 in King's Cross Station. As it slowed to a stop the students began to get up and stretch their legs. Shane and Daryl stood up as well, as did James and Dom. Then as James moved to step between Shane and Daryl and take the lead, he wound up lying face down on the floor with an odd squawk-sound.

All the surrounding students turned and stared, and then the laughing started. Daryl and Shane stared down at James' foot, which rested on an invisible string connected to the legs of their jeans. George Weasley's famous Ridicule Rope, one of the most popular products of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes, perfect for dealing with hotheads who liked to take the lead or hide behind their cronies.

The surrounding students continued laughing as they filed off the train. James quickly scrambled to his feet and glared at his cousins, who passed by right in front of him, barely managing to restrain their laughter.

Harry and Ginny Potter awaited their children on the platform, standing with Ron. Lily and Hugo, who had been sitting against the back wall of the platform, came running up when they saw the train arrive. Albus got off with the other first-years, and he and Rose spotted their fathers immediately.

"Well hello there, Rose. Get expelled already?" joked Ron. His daughter glared at him, and it occurred to Harry that if Hermione were here she would give him that exact same look.

"Is Aunt Hermione still in Australia?" asked Albus.

Most of the laughter died on Ron's face, and he nodded glumly. Hermione had searched for a way to undo the memory charms that she had placed on her parents during the Second War, so that Voldemort would not be able to find them. Yet when she had first placed the charms, she had been teaching herself the spells, and in her lack of self-confidence, had vastly underestimated her ability to cast them well. Thus the charms were far more powerful than she had intended them to be, the strongest memory charms that even the most experienced contemporary witches and wizards had ever seen. Neither she nor the greatest healers from St. Mungo's could find a way to heal their minds.

She traveled to Australia every couple of months for years to speak to her parents and try to get them to remember, but they had come to regard her as a poor, mad orphan desperate for a family. It seemed that Daniel and Helen Granger would forever know themselves to be Wendell and Monica Wilkins. She couldn't even get them to return to Britain with her, since she had convinced them when she had first placed the charms that it was their greatest dream to move to Australia, and there they intended to stay.

She gave up hope when, after four years, she found out that her mother was pregnant. Believing that they had never had children, Wendell and Monica Wilkins decided to have a child, and the result was Mara Wilkins, now fifteen, who would likely never know that she had a sister.

Hermione changed with Mara's birth. It was at that point that she realized that for all the incredible magic she had performed during the Second War, her most prominent and lasting achievement had destroyed her life. She devoted herself to creating a new one, and, after four years of waiting for Ronald Weasley, finally gave up on patience and proposed to him, just days after Harry and Ginny's wedding.

When Rose and Hugo came along, Hermione made one last attempt, taking her children to meet their grandparents. However, though the Wilkins had congratulated her on her two beautiful children, they had shown no emotional connection to them. By then they had devoted themselves to doting on young Mara, and were not at all inclined to listen to any more of Hermione's mad claims.

Hermione still went to Australia occasionally. But these trips were just to check on her parents, she rarely showed herself. She had decided to take a personal vacation there after Rose went to Hogwarts, staying there two weeks, but she had made no mention to Ron as to whether or not she intended to spend any time with her parents.

James approached his family on the platform, glaring at the back of his brother's head. People were still glancing at him and laughing as they passed him.

"Alright there, James?" Harry asked.

"Fine," James replied curtly.

"Let's get going," said Albus, wanting to leave before his father got too much attention. No sooner had he said this than Franky appeared, being tugged along by a man who must have been his father.

"Mr. Potter!" said the man excitedly. "Very, very pleased to meet you! I'm William Truit. My son tells me he has become very good friends with yours in school."

Franky looked at his beaming father for a moment, then at Harry, then at Albus. Albus frowned at him, and Franky quickly shifted his gaze back to Harry.

"Really? Well then, pleased to meet you both," Harry replied kindly, shaking hands with both the father and the son. "I've heard your name before, I believe," he said to William, whose face lit up even brighter. "You're connected to the Daily Prophet, aren't you."

Mr. Truit nodded vigorously. "Yes sir, I write for it."

"I see," said Harry, casting a glance at Franky, who squirmed uncomfortably. "Well, it was nice meeting you, but we must be off." With that the Potters turned as one and left the platform, with William Truit beaming after them and Franky glaring up at his father.

"Be careful around that one, Albus," Harry warned as they got into his car. "You never know what gossip he will produce for his father to write in the Prophet." The Daily Prophet was not much more friendly to Harry now than it had been two decades before, especially after Ginny agreed to work for them as Senior Quidditch Correspondent and then quit after less than a month because she disliked the working environment. Rita Skeeter, by a stroke of undeserved fortune, had been named Chief Editor, her claim based on the fact that she was the only Daily Prophet reporter whom Harry Potter had ever commissioned to write a story, back in his fifth year at Hogwarts. What was once considered the most respectable wizarding newspaper in Britain had thus devolved essentially into a gossip magazine.

"He is a bit of a loud mouth," Albus admitted. "But he seems like a nice guy."

"So do all reporters, until you see what they write," said Harry. The one exception to this was Xenophilius Lovegood, who had managed to significantly increase the circulation of his bizarre magazine, the Quibbler, since the Second War.

The drive to Kensington was short, and Harry parked, as he always did, in a parking lot not far from Kensington Gardens, but not too close to it either. There, after making sure there was no one around to see, he performed Disillusionment Charms on his family, since obviously they could not all fit under James' invisibility cloak, and they walked towards the park.

The Elfin Oak in Kensington Gardens is a most curious tree stump. Designed by Ivor Innes in the late 1920s, the stump features tiny carved depictions of animals as well as magical creatures such as elves and gnomes, the way Muggles perceive them. For Harry, who grew up first in the Muggle World and then in the wizarding one, the stump was an obvious choice for where to locate the secret entrance to the hidden Potter home. A small rock, placed at the base of the cage around the stump and hidden by a Fidelius Charm, for which Hermione is the Secret-Keeper, serves as the portkey.

The invisible family surrounded the rock, and on the whispered count of three by Harry they all touched it, feeling the tug behind their navels as they were transported into a large clearing in the middle of an impenetrable forest, which contained every ward Hermione could think to conjure. Considering the wealth of the Potter family, the house in the center of the clearing was fairly modest, three stories high and about the length of a quidditch pitch, and Victorian in style.

As the family entered the house, James and Albus quickly deposited their trunks. "Don't get too comfortable just yet," Ginny warned. "We're having dinner with the Minister and his wife tonight back in town."

James' face fell. "That old git?"

"Watch your language," said Ginny sharply, though she secretly never minded when James talked like that, since it reminded her of her brother Fred, may he rest in peace.

"Why did we come back here then?" asked Albus. "Might as well just have stayed downtown when we left the station."

"Well we have over a half hour," said Harry, looking at Fabian Prewett's watch. "And this way you can change into more suitable attire."

* * *

><p>That half hour, however, seemed to pass extraordinarily quickly, and soon the Potters were back in the car, returning downtown to a prestigious restaurant where they would meet the Minister and his wife.<p>

Ramicus Bendleby was a politician through and through. Under Cornelius Fudge's and Rufus Scrimgour's regimes he served as the Ministry's ambassador to the American Board of Magi, the United States of America's equivalent of Britain's Ministry of Magic. He was then promoted to Chief Manager of Relations with Foreign Ministries, before the Wizengamot appointed him Minister five years ago.

He was a tall, slightly heavyset man whose hair had been gray for quite a while now. His eyebrows were a little heavier than average, hanging over hazel eyes that had no particularly catching quality about them. His thin-lipped mouth seemed forever curved into a slight smile, and a small, pointy gray beard hung down the front of his chin.

On this particular evening he wore a long gray coat that matched his hair, as well as the silver dress that his wife was wearing. She was a very pretty witch, considering her age, with long, flowing hair that she was very careful to make sure stayed blonde as she aged, and all lines on her face were well-hidden. Her blue-eyed gaze was more intense than her husband's, though still not particularly captivating.

"Well, Mr. Potter, good to see you again," said the Minister as they sat down to dinner. He turned to the rest of the Potter family. "And I trust you're all well."

"Yes we are, thank you," Ginny replied graciously. James and Albus gave the Minister somewhat less pleasant looks.

The Minister, ever with an eye for the expressions of the audience, caught these looks, and turned to Harry. "They still don't know what happened, do they?" he asked in a much lower voice than he had been speaking in before, though obviously not low enough for the others not to hear. Harry shook his head. "Well," said the Minister, looking back at the boys, "I can understand if you two aren't very happy with me right now. But you must understand, this is being done for the safety of the students. What happened at Hogwarts was a very grave incident, which the other students should still not yet be told of, and it cannot be allowed to be repeated."

"_Other_ students?" piped up James with one eyebrow raised.

The Minister paused for an instant, then gave a slight smile. "Very sharp, my boy. Obviously there are some students that know what happened, but Professor Zarin has assured the Ministry that they understand the gravity of the situation and will not go about spreading rumors."

Harry gave a slight frown. "And what of the assurances of Headmistress McGonagall?"

The Minister gave a gentle smile. "You'll forgive us if our confidence in the Headmistress is slightly shaky right now."

A silence fell over the table. Harry maintained his gaze on the Minister, while Ginny looked away. James and Albus's expressions mimicked their father's, while Lily fiddled uncomfortably with her black dress.

A waiter appeared, asking for everyone's orders. A small argument ensued between Ginny and her daughter, who was still a fairly picky eater, while the Minister and his wife watched with amusement.

It wasn't until after the food was brought that the Minister tried again. "You must understand, Mr. Potter. The safety of the students is the most important matter where the school is concerned."

"Of course I know that," said Harry, a little sharply.

"It seems that the Headmistress has proven incapable of keeping her students safe."

"We don't even know how—" Harry paused, glancing at his children. "—it happened."

"Precisely!" said the Minister. "That is why an investigation must be carried out."

"I agree with you there. But I see no reason why Headmistress McGonagall's abilities should be called into question."

"Because something happened within the school," the Minister stated slowly, gesturing with his hands for emphasis. "Within one of the houses, no less, which should have extra protection. Everyone that should have been within the Slytherin dungeon at the time was interrogated with veritaserum, so it had to be someone from outside. That meant that the dungeon was breached."

Harry had no response to this. Everything that the Minister was saying was true. Since the Killing Curse was the only known manner of killing that didn't leave any trace, that had to have been what had killed the boy. That meant that it had occurred within the Slytherin dormitory. Since all the Slytherins had been interrogated with veritaserum, it wasn't one of them. The only other two that knew the password to the Slytherin dungeon, Professor Zarin and Headmistress McGonagall, had submitted themselves to veritaserum and undergone full interrogations before the Wizengamot itself, proving that it wasn't either of them, not that Harry could ever have suspected McGonagall of such a thing.

So the Slytherin dungeon had been breached. How that was possible, Harry had no idea. But it certainly did seem to call into question McGonagall's ability to protect the students.

He glanced at Albus, who was looking back and forth between his father and the Minister in confusion, and then at James, who was looking at the Minister with a slight frown.

Albus watched as his father glanced between his children. He seemed to be fighting with himself. The Minister also looked at the boys. "Your children must be kept safe." Albus looked at him, and their eyes met. Despite the concern in the Minister's expression, there was a look of indifference in his eyes.

The Minister turned back to Harry. "I would very much like to have your support in this, Mr. Potter."

Harry was still looking at James. After a moment he looked back at the Minister. He hesitated a second before he spoke. "Very well. You have it."

Albus saw James narrow his eyes ever so slightly at their father.

"Thank you," said the Minister graciously. He waited a moment before making his next request. "I would also like you to lead the investigation at Hogwarts this week."

Harry, who had just turned back to his meal, looked back up in surprise. "Kingsley is not leading it?" Kingsley Shacklebolt was still the Head of the Auror Department.

"I want Kingsley at the Ministry in case something else happens."

Harry continued to look at the Minister for a second before nodding. "Okay."

With that the tension at the table seemed to break a little, and conversation shifted to more mundane matters for the remainder of the dinner. Albus continued to glance at James every now and then. The older brother had a look of disappointment on his face, and seemed thoroughly displeased with the result of the conversation between his father and the Minister.

During the drive back to Kensington the car was silent. Lily had her head resting on Albus's arm, on the brink of sleep. James was glaring out the window. Every now and then Albus glanced either at his father or at his brother, still confused by some parts of the conversation.

Once they were back home James marched up to his room and shut his door tightly. Ginny put Lily to bed and then joined Harry in front of the tele, leaning against him as he placed his arm around her. Albus went up to his room and shut the door, then lay down on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He wanted to talk to Rose about this, since he had a feeling she would be better able to understand it all than he was.

But as he continued to lay there he felt sleep approach, and became less inclined to write to her now. That could wait until morning. His thoughts shifted to Hogwarts, which was devoid of students in September for the first time since who knows when. He missed the school, though he had only been there a week.

He fell asleep, dreaming of the castle and the students and the sense of home and safety that the school had once been known for, a sense which now seemed to be in jeopardy.


	6. Dinner with the Dursleys

**A/N: Enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: Same as before.**

**Chapter 6: Dinner with the Dursleys**

After a week at Hogwarts, Albus found being back at home to be quite boring. He missed being around everyone his own age.

However, despite the lack of the lightning-paced world of Hogwarts, the week at home seemed to pass by rather quickly. Uncle Ron and Rose and Hugo came over on Tuesday, so Albus got time to talk to his cousin. However the conversation between his father and the Minister didn't seem to concern her the way it had concerned James.

"Dad says that the Ministry is always trying stuff like that, discrediting Hogwarts professors they don't like so that they can try to gain more power over the school," she said. "Remember when he told us about that woman Umbridge? And of course they want Harry Potter's support for everything they do, because that almost certainly gets them the support of most of Wizarding Britain."

Albus flinched at the mention of his father's fame. "It seemed to bother James a lot."

Rose raised her eyebrows. "Well we know that Headmistress McGonagall has tended to go rather easy on your brother when he's done one of his little pranks. So of course he likes her."

Albus still felt uncomfortable with this whole deal.

"Look," said Rose, "the important thing now is to find out what happened in the Slytherin dungeon. Until we know that we won't know if the Ministry has serious reason to discredit the Headmistress."

"But if we couldn't get Scorpius to tell us, who can we get?" Albus asked.

Rose shrugged. "I don't know. But we'll find someone."

* * *

><p>On Thursday James challenged Albus to a flying race. Albus knew he was going to lose, but accepted anyway. The two stepped outside with their brooms, and Lily hastily followed them. All three of the Potter children had received brooms for their seventh birthdays from Uncle Ron, and each time their father had immediately placed a jinx that would last three years and keep the broom from going above ten feet in the air.<p>

James and Albus took off, and Lily tried to follow them, though since her broom was still jinxed she couldn't go nearly as high. She did her best to keep pace with Albus as he zoomed around the house following James, who was quickly building his lead. Once the race was done Albus hovered down to level with his sister, letting her fly in circles around him. She was learning to fly quite well quite quickly, always coming out with her broom whenever James did. She was more or less always stable now, and could just about keep up with Albus. Harry anticipated that his daughter would prove to be quite the quidditch player during her time at Hogwarts.

Albus had also promised to teach his sister chess, and she chose this moment to remind him of it.

"We'll do that tonight," he said.

She shook her head, red pigtails swinging left and right. "We can't. Tonight we're going to Daddy's cousin's house for dinner."

"What?" James appeared from above, flying down and hovering beside Albus. "The Dursleys?"

Lily nodded.

This was news. Their father rarely spoke of his cousin. James and Albus had only ever met Dudley Dursley once, and their father and Dudley had been cordial at this encounter, but not too friendly. Thus the idea of having dinner with the Dursleys seemed quite bizarre.

When their mother returned from her job they asked her about it. "He invited us," she replied simply.

"When?"

"Last Sunday, when we saw them at the station. Just after your train left."

Albus recalled his father mentioning this encounter. The Dursleys had gotten to the station but couldn't find Platform 9 3/4, and the Potters had run into them on the way out. So Harry Potter had brought Harry Dursley to Hogwarts.

James still looked confused.

"Now that they've got a son who knows magic, I suppose they want to get to know us better," said Ginny. She didn't much like the idea of spending time with the Dursleys either. The notion of how they treated her Harry for all those years still made her burn with anger.

James frowned, but then shrugged. "Alright." Albus glanced at him, before shrugging as well. If for nothing else, this dinner would serve to get to know Harry Dursley better, since they were in the same year.

* * *

><p>When Harry got back from another day of leading the fruitless investigation at Hogwarts, Albus studied his face when he talked about going to the Dursleys' house. He looked somewhat eager and somewhat... apprehensive.<p>

The drive to Surrey was quiet. Lily asked Albus about chess, and Albus told her he would teach her tomorrow. When Lily asked her parents about the Dursleys, Ginny responded that she would meet them soon enough.

The Dursleys still possessed number four, Privet Drive. When Vernon Dursley had a heart attack and was in the hospital for a while, Petunia asked Dudley, who had been living in a flat with his wife and two young sons at the time, to bring his family and return to the house. Now that Vernon had passed away, Dudley owned the house, and there he cared for his mother as well as his family.

As Harry pulled into the driveway, he couldn't take his eyes away from the house. It was here he had spent the ten most miserable years of his life, and the horribly tedious six summers that followed. He had hoped that he might never see this place again, until Dudley showed up at King's Cross last week.

He would never forget, never shake off what he had suffered here: sleeping in a cupboard under the stairs, made to work like a slave for the only family he knew, bearing the abuses of his spoiled cousin, and never knowing who his parents really were, and who he really was.

He loathed this place, but at the same time he felt a certain sentimentality towards it. This had, after all, been his home for a decade.

The Potters strode up the front walk together, and Harry knocked. Dudley opened the door, and the cousins stared at each other for a moment. Then Dudley stepped aside and bade them enter.

The house looked much the same as it had, both inside and out. Harry took it all in with a glance, the memories flooding his mind.

His family entered behind him , making their way around him as he stopped just inside the door. The children looked around with wide eyes at the house where their father had grown up.

"Harry?" The voice was barely more than a whisper. Petunia Dursley appeared, coming from the sitting room. She stared at her nephew, her face an indescribable blend of emotions. She looked like she had aged considerably in the past twenty years, with lines down the side of her face and her arms, and her hands were wrinkled and veiny.

Harry met her gaze, and they held like that for a while. Ginny glanced uncomfortably at the small door to the cupboard beneath the staircase, while Albus sought out Harry Dursley.

"Er, why don't we all go into the sitting room," said Dudley, uncomfortably trapped between his mother and his cousin. "Dinner will be ready soon."

The furniture in the sitting room was new. Three white couches sat around a large, square coffee table, while the TV occupied the fourth side. The dining room table was in the same place it had been, between the sitting room and the kitchen, where Dudley's wife was working hastily on completing the meal. Harry recalled hundreds of times that he had stood in that room doing the exact same thing.

Mary-Anne Dursley was a reasonably pretty woman. She had long blonde hair and a soft face, with pale-brown eyes. She was slightly overweight, but this gave her a more homely, motherly air. Harry was at once reminded of his mother-in-law, Molly Weasley.

Dudley, for his part, was not as heavy as he had been twenty years ago. He was smaller than his father had been at this age, and though his face was still somewhat child-like, he had finally developed an air of maturity now that had been completely absent before.

He sat on the couch facing the kitchen, watching his wife as she worked. Harry sat on the couch opposite his, Ginny beside him, until Lily squeezed herself between them. Petunia seated herself on the third couch, smiling fondly at her grand-nephews as they seemed to be considering whether or not to sit beside her.

Just then the two Dursley children entered the room. Harry Dursley waved at Albus, who waved back. The younger boy appeared more timid, not looking at anyone other than his father. He was small, even for a nine-year old, and had blonde hair cut neatly around his head, and the same pale-brown eyes as his mother.

"Vernon, please say hello to our guests," said Dudley gently. Harry knew at once that Dudley was not like his parents, who had generally not cared whether he was at all polite when they had guests, unless they were powerful businesspeople such as the Masons. Little Vernon Dursley cast a quick wave in the Potters' general direction, still not looking at them. "He's a little timid," Dudley explained, stating the obvious.

Harry nodded understandingly, nudging Lily, who gave Vernon a polite hello. Vernon waved once more, climbing onto the couch beside his father.

The room fell into an awkward moment of silence, before Ginny, who was expecting many such moments to occur during the evening, turned to Harry Dursley. "So how do you like Hogwarts, Harry?"

Harry Potter saw the look appear on Dudley's face, the apprehensive expression that always appeared whenever something related to magic was brought up. He could tell Dudley was still getting used to the idea of his son being a wizard.

"It's wonderful, it really is," replied Harry Dursley.

Ginny nodded, smiling. "You're in Hufflepuff, I hear."

Harry Dursley nodded. "The kids are really nice there."

Harry Potter joined in. "Yes, Hufflepuff is probably the best house for M—" Ginny pinched his arm, which he had rested on the back of the couch behind Lily. "...kids new to magic."

Harry Dursley nodded again. "There are four other Muggle-borns in my year."

"Muggle-borns?" asked Dudley, not sure he liked the sound of that word.

Harry Dursley turned to his father. "Children of non-magic people."

"Ah," said Dudley. He couldn't remember if he had ever been called a "Muggle" by one of his cousin's friends, but it sounded to him like a demeaning term.

Another uncomfortable silence fell, but just as Ginny was about to break it Dudley spoke up.

"Harry," he said quietly, addressing his cousin. "I need you to assure me that my boy is going to be safe there. Last time this family was involved with your world our lives were threatened and we had to go into hiding."

"He's safe there," Harry replied in his most assuring tone. "That trouble is long over."

"Yeah, he saved the world," added Harry Dursley excitedly, pointing at Harry Potter. Albus failed to hold back his frown, and hid behind his brother so the Dursleys wouldn't see it.

"Right, so I've heard," said Dudley, but he still looked nervous. "Then why is the school closed this week for an investigation?"

Harry shook his head. He had known this question was coming. "Just an accident that occurred on the night the students arrived at the school. A student was hurt, but it is very unlikely that such an occurrence will repeat itself." He sincerely hoped that what he was telling his cousin was the truth.

Dudley still seemed somewhat nervous. Just then his wife approached. "Dinner's ready." Her voice had a faint musical tone to it, and Harry wondered if she made a hobby of singing.

He breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that this news would placate Dudley for the moment. Unless his cousin had changed very much, the thought of food would pull him away from his worries quite easily. Sure enough, Dudley visibly relaxed, and got up to make his way to the dinner table.

Harry had gotten up as well, and turned towards the table, when Dudley froze. He was counting the chairs around the table, of which there were only nine.

"It's fine," said Ginny, pulling her wand out of the pocket of her jeans and conjuring a tenth chair at the table. Dudley remained frozen, staring at the chair.

Harry Dursley helped his grandmother to the table, then sat down on the other side of it, next to Albus. Harry Potter found himself sitting between his wife and his aunt, while James and Lily sat at the end of the table, opposite Dudley and Vernon. Mary-Anne took the spare seat next to her older son.

Dinner was a meat-and-rice hybrid dish the likes of which Ginny had never experienced before, despite Harry's occasional coaching her in Muggle foods. She found herself enjoying the meal quite a lot, despite the fact that it lacked the prestigious magical spice known by most as dragon dust, which changed in taste depending on the tastes of the person consuming the food. Harry, who enjoyed cooking the Muggle way as he had grown up here doing, and was also somewhat wary of dragon dust due to its controversial history, tended to prepare food without the spice, but this almost always prompted protests from the children.

However, at the moment James and Albus were eating the Muggle food without so much as making faces. Lily poked at her food with her fork for a bit, but after a look at her mum earned her nothing, she began to eat silently, albeit slowly.

Petunia, who had silently maintained her morose expression during the first part of the Potters' visit, now watched her nephew eat at the table, something she had so rarely allowed him to do during his time here. Her expression grew more and more somber as the dinner progressed, until finally she could restrain herself no more, and the tears burst from her eyes.

"Mum?" Dudley looked his mother with concern.

"I'm sorry," said Petunia between sobs. "I'm so sorry."

Harry wasn't sure at first if she was speaking to him.

Petunia managed to regain control of herself, and the sobs subsided. She looked up at a point somewhere above Mary-Anne's head, and the tears slowed their travel down her cheeks, then finally stopped.

"Mum?" Dudley asked again. "Are you okay?"

"Forgive me, Harry," she said, her eyes still intent on a point above her daughter-in-law's head.

Harry didn't know what to say. In truth, he had never quite forgiven her for everything that she did, and he doubted he ever would be able to fully forgive her. The abuse he had suffered here, despite the obvious fact that he had suffered far worse troubles, was still a sore spot on his soul.

Petunia looked down, her eyes full of remorse. "I know that I was a terrible aunt. Just like my Aunt Selma, if not worse. I resented my sister because I knew she was better than me. And not just because she had magic."

Harry looked down at her wrinkled hand, then slowly took it in his own. "It's okay," he said gently.

Her hand gripped his tightly, affectionately. Her eyes closed, and a tear escaped from beneath her eyelid. "Lily," she whispered. She began to cry silently, bringing her other hand up to cover her face.

Dudley turned to his older son. "Harry," he said softly, "why don't you help your grandmother upstairs."

"No," Petunia interjected with surprising sharpness, and Harry Dursley froze halfway out of his chair. Gathering herself once more, she took a deep breath. "You didn't deserve what we did to you. You didn't deserve to suffer from my resentment of my sister. From my jealousy of her." She fell silent for several seconds, gazing into nothing. "Nor did she deserve my resentment. Lily was..." But Petunia could not find the kind words that she had spent nearly her entire life contradicting, and she fell silent once more, her eyes becoming unfocused.

The silence went on, and the others at the table shifted uncomfortably. Finally Petunia let go of Harry's hand, indicating that she did not want to say any more.

Hushed conversations began as the dinner resumed. Ginny chided her daughter when she went back to poking at her food, and Albus and Harry Dursley talked quietly about Hogwarts. Dudley continued to watch his mother with concern, but she paid him no heed, lost in her memories.

Dinner was just ending when all of a sudden the Dursley's fire place erupted, and from the green flames stepped none other than the Minister of Magic, Ramicus Bendleby. Dudley leaped up in shock, then quickly moved to help his wife, who had fallen backwards in her chair. Little Vernon looked to be in a state of shock as well.

"Minister!" exclaimed Harry in surprise. "What brings you here?"

"M-Minister?" Dudley sputtered, holding up his wife, who looked absolutely horrified at the sight of the intruder in her living room. Only once before had the fireplace at number four, Privet Drive been used for floo travel, and she had not been privy to that.

"I'm terribly sorry for the intrusion," said the Minister hastily. "Mr. Potter, I need to speak with you, urgently."

"How did you know I was here?" Harry asked.

The Minister frowned slightly. "Need I remind you that all Muggle cars used by wizards are registered in the Department of Muggle Artifacts?"

"Right," muttered Harry.

"Is there a place where we may speak privately?" asked the Minister. Harry glanced at his cousin, who silently pointed upwards, still half in shock.

Harry led the Minister up the stairs and into his old bedroom. As the door shut behind them James immediately ascended the stairs himself, pulling a long, flesh-colored string out of his pocket. Extendable Ears. He placed one end under the door carefully, and listened to the other. Albus moved up beside him and listened as well.

"What's happened?" they heard their father ask.

Albus felt a tap on his shoulder, and turned to see Harry Dursley standing there, pointing at the string in James' hand. The Potter brothers moved so that he could listen as well.

"The body is gone," said the Minister, his voice taking on an uncharacteristically somber tone. "It disappeared from St. Mungo's this afternoon."

Albus and James exchanged a long, wide-eyed glance. The _body_? But that meant that someone had...

There was silence on the other end, and James began to worry that an imperturbable charm had been placed on the door, until his father's voice was heard once more.

"How?"

For some reason, this one word chilled Albus to the bone. His father had experienced more powerful magic than most wizards and witches had ever dreamed of. The fact that something could surprise him like this scared Albus badly.

"We don't know," replied the Minister.

More silence.

"Imperturbus." The Potter boys turned to find their mother standing behind them. Ginny's expression was not quite unhappy, but she was hardly pleased. "Downstairs," she whispered, though she did not confiscate the Extendable Ears. They were, after all, her brothers' invention, and she had used them more than once in her youth.

The boys returned downstairs, followed by Ginny. The Muggles were still seated at the table, wondering what the blazes was going on in their own house.

Minutes later Harry and the Minister reappeared, and the Minister hastily bade everyone farewell as he returned to the fireplace. Pulling some floo powder from his robes, he threw it into the fireplace, and green flames erupted once more. "The Ministry of Magic!" He stepped into the fire and was gone.

A moment passed, and then Mary-Anne Dursley erupted from her seat. "What is that?" she exclaimed, apparently speaking of the mode of transportation.

"Floo travel..." said Harry, searching for a way to explain it.

"Wizards have a way of traveling between each other's fireplaces," said Dudley, remembering the Weasleys leaving here by floo years ago, though he had been rather tongue-tied at the time. The explanation sounded strange coming from him.

"What?" Mary-Anne exclaimed, aghast. She turned and stared at her older son, looking horrified.

Ginny exchanged a glance with her husband. "I think we'd best be going," she said. "It was a pleasure dining with you." The Dursleys simply looked at her, still struggling over the matter of floo travel. Ginny tugged on her husband's arm and led Lily towards the door with her other hand, and James and Albus followed silently, holding in their laughter.

Once the car had pulled away from number four, Privet Drive, James and Albus erupted in hysterics. The poor Muggles.

"Be quiet," said their father sternly. He looked over and saw his wife covering her own smile with her hand. "Ginny..."

"I know, I know," Ginny replied, the laughter evident in her voice.

It was only once they had returned home and Albus had returned to his room that he pondered what he had overheard with the Extendable Ears. A body meant that someone had died. And a body disappearing meant that something very strange was going on. And a body disappearing from St. Mungo's meant that whatever was going on was not only very strange but also had very powerful magic involved.

He was scared now, more than ever.


	7. Another Train Ride

**A/N: This chapter is more focused on the third-years. Enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: Same as before.**

**Chapter 7: Another Train Ride**

By the time Sunday came around Albus was already packed to return to Hogwarts. The train was due to leave at 11:00, as it did on September 1st, but first Harry had to pick up Harry Dursley.

Harry had returned to his cousin's house the day following the dinner to make sure that they were all okay after the excitement of the previous night. Dudley had asked him to take Harry Dursley to King's Cross and onto Platform 9 3/4.

Ginny had decided that she didn't wish to go and see them off a second time this year, but Lily insisted that she come, so James sat in the front passenger seat while they went to get Harry Dursley in Little Whinging.

While Harry Potter struggled to get all three of the trunks into the rear of his Muggle car, and James tried to help him but resulted only in making things more difficult, Harry Dursley tried to talk to Albus about what they had overheard of the conversation between Harry Potter and the Minister.

"What?" Lily asked, sitting between them in the backseat and glancing back and forth. The car shook as Harry Potter tried to shove the third trunk in.

"Don't tell anyone about it," was all Albus would say in front of his sister.

"What?" Lily insisted.

"Just use a charm!" they heard James say to his father.

"Nothing," said Albus.

"Engorgio," muttered Harry. "The Department of Muggle Artifacts will love this."

"Tell me!" Lily demanded. The rear of the car slammed shut.

"Nothing!" Albus repeated. Harry and James got back into the car.

"Daddy," Lily started.

"Crumple-horned Snorkacks!" shouted Harry Dursley. Blessed silence fell, as three pairs of eyes fell on him and Harry Potter stared at him through the rearview mirror. "That's what we were talking about," he said to Lily.

"Oh. What are those?"

Harry Potter chuckled to himself.

"They're creatures," said Harry Dursley.

"What kind of creatures?"

"Um, I'm not sure. Never actually seen one myself."

"Where did you read about them?" Harry Potter asked.

"There was an old magazine in the Hufflepuff Common Room. Apparently there are a lot of strange creatures in the Wizarding World."

Harry Potter chuckled again. "You have no idea."

"Have you ever seen one?" Harry Dursley asked him.

"No."

"I wanna see one!" Lily declared.

At this point Harry couldn't stop chuckling. "Lily Luna," he muttered.

"Yes?"

"Nothing."

"What?" she demanded.

Albus rolled his eyes.

* * *

><p>When they got to the station James once again led the way through the barrier to Platform 9 34. Harry Dursley watched with wide eyes.

"Alright Harry, give it a go," said Harry Potter.

Albus watched as Harry Dursley lined himself up with the wall, staring at it warily. After several seconds he began running towards it. When he was close he lowered his head, gritting his teeth together. Just as he was about to hit the wall he let out a scream, which went on as he vanished through the barrier.

"Go ahead, Albus," said his father. Albus went through, much more comfortable with it this time, and his father followed with Lily.

Harry Dursley was staring at the barrier now from the other side, marveling at the fact that he had just gone right through it. Albus wondered if he hadn't actually noticed passing through it on the way off the platform a week before. "Come on," he said, tugging on Harry's arm, "let's find Rose."

The first-years disappeared into the crowd, and Harry Potter saw James already caught up in a conversation with... Seamus Finnegan? He made his way over, and his old Gryffindor friend saw him and waved.

"Seamus!" exclaimed Harry, waving back. "How are you?"

"Very well, thanks. You?" His Irish accent was as thick as ever. Beside him stood his son, Daryl, who Harry knew James was good friends with.

"Fine, thanks," Harry replied. James and Daryl were talking in low, conspiratorial tones, as though they were planning something. "Dare I ask what you two are conspiring about?" he asked, stepping up behind his son.

James straightened up and glanced at his father. "Oh, just a little welcome back party," he said offhandedly.

Seamus chuckled. "Just like us, aren't they." Harry grinned, turning to him.

James began scanning the platform, seeking Shane and Dom.

"So what have you been up to lately?" Harry asked Seamus, not noticing his son freeze behind him, staring at something on the far side of the platform.

Seamus stood up straight and beamed proudly. "You're looking at the new Chief Financial Advisor for the Ireland Quidditch Team."

Harry hadn't even known that professional quidditch teams had financial advisors, but he supposed someone had to manage the equipment expenses. He had retired from quidditch years ago.

Daryl followed James' gaze across the platform. "Not anxious to have to deal with Michaela Black again, are you?"

"Black?" Harry spun around at the name, and Seamus frowned in confusion.

James looked at his father. "You know that name?"

Harry stared at his son for a moment, then nodded. He had never mentioned to James exactly who he had gotten his middle name from.

The horn on the train sounded. It was just about 11. "Come on, James," said Daryl, tugging on his arm.

James took one last confused glance at his father, who still had a stunned expression on his face, and followed Daryl towards the train.

"You don't think she's related to Sirius Black, do you?" Seamus asked in almost a whisper.

Harry shook his head, still staring at his son's back. Phineas Nigellus Black had said from his portrait following Sirius's death that the ancient Black family had ended with Sirius' death.

Michaela _Black_?

Harry decided that it had to just be a coincidence. His godfather's family had ended with him. There must have been other families with the surname Black. Considering how commonplace the word was, of course it must have been used as a surname by multiple families.

James stepped onto the train, disappearing from his father's sight. He and Daryl found Shane and Dom already sitting in a compartment. Daryl entered and sat down, and James this time shut the door to the compartment, not in the mood for any more pranks like the previous ride.

"Hey there, James," said Shane, reaching out for a fist pound.

"Hey, Shane," James replied, sparing him only a momentary glance as he looked out the window. They were seated on the side of the train facing away from the platform, and James' friends found it rather odd that he was staring at a blank wall.

"Alright there, mate?" Shane asked. The train began to move.

"Yeah," James replied, still focused on the wall, which was now retreating away.

Shane glanced at Daryl, who was watching James with concern. "Did something happen on the platform?"

"Nothing," said James immediately, finally looking at him. Something inside him was telling him his friends ought not to know that he was bothered so much by his father's reaction to the name Black.

But then the door of the compartment opened, and James looked up to find himself staring into the glare of none other than Michaela Black.

"Hello, Jamie," she said with mock sweetness. "Have a good break?"

"I did, yeah," he replied, feigning indifference, his father's reaction to the name still hovering in his mind's eye. "You?"

"Yes, I did, thank you." As she said this she gave a smile, and suddenly James felt a sensation of being struck by an unusual jinx. He quickly looked for her wand, but both of her hands were empty. Could she do wandless magic?

Seeing his expression, her demeanor changed. "Are you okay, Jamie?" she asked with feigned concern, extending a hand towards him. He cringed away from her hand. If she was capable of wandless magic, he didn't want that hand anywhere near him.

She withdrew, and her look of concern changed to a smirk. "Alright Jamie, if that's the game you want to play. Have a good trip." With that she shut the compartment door and disappeared.

"Are you alright, mate?" Shane asked again, this time with doubled concern.

"She jinxed me!" James exclaimed.

Daryl frowned. "She didn't have her wand out."

"I think she can do wandless magic!"

All three of his friends looked at him skeptically. "Wandless magic?"

"I'm telling you, I felt a jinx hit me!" Just then everything went black. Darkness powder? No, this was even darker than darkness powder. James couldn't see a single thing.

Was this just him? Was this an effect of the jinx? Did it make him blind?

"Guys!" Dom's little voice sounded loudly in his ears.

"What the blazes is this?" Shane demanded.

Okay, so it wasn't just him. But then what the blazes was this?

A pillar of fire erupted in the center of the compartment. It illuminated the faces of James' friends, and James saw the looks of surprise and terror on their faces, guessing that he must have the same look. He stared into the swirling flames.

Tongues of fire lashed out to and fro, not long enough to reach the terrified boys but close enough to make them sink back against their seats. The pillar of fire bulged, letting out the sound of a roar.

"Aguamenti!" Daryl shouted, pointing his wand at the fire. The jet of water went right through the pillar of flame, splashing Dom on the other side.

Then there was a sound like knives rubbing against each other, and several long, curved blades emerged out of the fire. The vile-looking blades slashed through the air, and the boys tried to back up even farther into their seats.

"Reducto!" Shane shouted. James ducked as the curse sailed right through the fire and blades and over his head, striking his trunk on the rack above. The trunk shook violently, and James' briefly wondered how many of his possessions had been destroyed, before ducking again as a blade swung over his head.

* * *

><p>In the next train car over, the first-years sat quietly. Albus stared out the window, watching the passing landscape. Rose sat beside him, her nose buried in their Defense Against the Dark Arts book. Allison lay along the seat opposite them, fast asleep, still wearing her Muggle clothes.<p>

When Albus and Harry Dursley had gone to seek out Rose on the platform, they found her already standing beside Allison, while Uncle Ron was happily explaining to Allison's father, who was a Muggle, about how Arthur Weasley had convinced the Ministry to change the dynamics of the barrier between platforms 9 and 10 so that Muggles whose children went to Hogwarts could go with them onto the platform. Of course, Arthur had been remembering how Hermione's parents could never join her on the platform when he had urged this legislation. Allison's mother, a very beautiful witch whom Albus was sure he had seen somewhere before, was watching her daughter proudly, seemingly ecstatic about the fact that her daughter had become such good friends with the daughter of the famous couple Ron and Hermione Weasley.

Albus had immediately felt a pang of jealousy seeing Rose with Allison, and she had simply waved at him when he appeared, and went on talking to Allison. Then Harry Dursley had spotted his Hufflepuff friends and run off, waving goodbye to Albus and leaving him with the girls, who didn't even bother to incorporate him into their conversation.

Now that Allison had fallen asleep on the train, Albus had hoped that Rose would at least pay him some attention. But she had her nose buried in a book.

"When do you suppose we'll start learning spells?"

"Huh?" Albus turned to her.

"In Defense Against the Dark Arts."

Albus shrugged. "If Brant knows any, I hope soon." He had a hunch that he would do quite well in that class, since he already knew some of his father's signature defensive spells.

"If he _knows_ any? Well, look who's such a know-it-all."

Albus scanned her face quickly for any sign that she was joking. "I'm just saying! He doesn't seem terribly bright."

"Because you're already an expert in defensive magic, aren't you?" She was glaring at him now, and for the life of him Albus couldn't understand what he had done wrong.

"No, I'm not! I'm just saying..."

But Rose had gone back to the book, and was no longer listening to him. He turned back and glared out the window, trying to figure out what he had said wrong.

* * *

><p>Confused and frustrated as Albus was, if he had known the predicament that his brother was in at that moment, he would have found his situation to be quite comfortable. For James and his friends were still trapped in utter darkness, with the roaring pillar of fire and violent swirling blades between them.<p>

"Shane, try to open the compartment door!" James yelled.

There was a sound of tapping, but after a while Shane yelled back, "I can't find the handle! It's not there!"

A blade swirled dangerously close to James' nose, and he tried to back up even further into his seat. The blades seemed to be swinging closer and closer to the trapped boys.

Daryl tried a few more spells, none of which worked. Then suddenly a blade swung out wide towards him. He couldn't dodge it, there was no way he could get any farther back or any lower.

"Daryl!" James shouted.

The blade reached the poor boy's face, then passed right through it. Daryl, who had shut his eyes tightly, opened them wide, watching as the blade returned to the pillar of fire.

Suddenly a whole series of blades were slashing out wide. They passed right through the boys. James winced the first time one reached him, passing across his chest. It felt like nothing more than a cold wind striking him.

"What the blazes is this?" Shane repeated, a blade passing through his face as he spoke.

Then the pillar of fire began to turn to smoke, spreading outward and upward. As the fire disappeared the blades seemed to disintegrate into silvery wisps, which vanished. Soon it was all gone, and the darkness lifted. The compartment of the train looked like new.

The boys stared at each other. The smell of urine pervaded the air, emanating from Dom. They looked around, seeking any traces of what had just happened. On the floor in the center of the compartment lay a small black box. James picked it up, finding it empty. On one side, three Ws were emblazoned in gold.

"He must be out of his mind," James muttered.

"That's your uncle's product?" Daryl asked, surprised.

James nodded. "Looks that way." He stared at the empty black box for a moment longer, then abruptly stood up, opening the compartment door. As he made to step out, he tripped over nothing visible, falling heavily to the floor of the corridor. Another Ridicule Rope, this one attached to each side of the door frame just outside the door.

There was laughter throughout the car. "Again, Potter," said a nearby Slytherin. "Can't stay on your feet, can you?"

James was on his feet and had his wand out in a heartbeat. Moments later there were tiny bats flying out of the Slytherin's nose and attacking him. James turned and made to leave the car, but just then a more mature voice called out. "Mr. Potter!"

James turned to face the Head Boy. "Theo."

"What do you think you are doing?"

"Going to find my cousin."

Theo's eyes widened slightly. James knew that it was the Head Girl who held the real power among the students. "Which one?"

"Guess."

Theo waved off the insolence. "Fifteen points from Gryffindor. Be glad I'm not taking more." With that he turned and walked away.

There was chuckling around the car. "Well done, Potter," said the Slytherin, who had managed to remove the hex from himself.

James waved his wand, and the hex started again. Then he turned and stalked out of the car.

* * *

><p>"Are you mad?"<p>

Michaela turned from her dinner and smiled at him. "No. What would I be mad at? But I assure you, if I were mad, you would not want to be around me." She had deliberately hid from him on the train, knowing that he would then confront her here in the Great Hall, and make a fool of himself in front of all the other Gryffindors.

James swore under his breath. "Bloody American! You know what I'm saying. You're crazy! Insane! Cuckoo!" He twirled his index finger around his ear.

She shrugged. "Maybe. But right now you look more 'cuckoo' then I could ever hope to be." She gave him a sympathetic look. "Are you okay?" She reached a hand towards him. He shied away from the hand, staring at it cautiously.

There were scattered chuckles. Across the table, on either side of Laura, Pearl and Selina giggled madly, but Laura silenced each of them with a glare. "Why don't you give it a rest!" she snapped at Michaela.

"Everything alright here?" James looked up to see Neville standing there, watching the group.

"Yes, Professor," replied James, looking back down to meet Michaela's challenging gaze.

Neville looked between them uncertainly.

"You know what?" said Michaela. "I can see where I'm not wanted." And with that she got up and stalked away from the table. James and Neville watched as she stalked all the way around the Hufflepuff table and sat down with the Ravenclaws, next to Sarah Anderson.

Neville turned back to James, looking unhappy. He stepped up very close to James and whispered in his ear. "Your father would never have provoked someone to do something like that."

Sitting next to Sarah, Michaela watched with satisfaction as Professor Longbottom reprimanded James.

"So what would a Gryffindor be doing sitting at the Ravenclaw table?" Michaela looked at the Ravenclaw across from her.

She shrugged. "I like it here." She gave the air a sniff. "The air is better."

The Ravenclaw frowned in surprise.

"It feels cleaner. Better for the hair," Michaela went on. Sarah was giggling into her hand.

"Um, right," replied the Ravenclaw, glancing at the air around him. He reached up a hand and waved his fingers, then sniffed the air.

Sarah was nearly hysterical by now, struggling madly to restrain herself.

Headmistress McGonagall stood up, and the room fell silent. "Welcome back, once again. Let us hope that there will not be any reason to further delay the school year."

She paused, and every student in the hall watched her intently.

"Rest assured, there is no reason to worry. The Ministry investigation turned up no existing threat within the school. You are all safe here."

Another pause.

"However, if another accident should occur within the grounds of this school," she said in her most ominous tone, "The Ministry will close down our school for the remainder of the school year."

The students all glanced at each other.

"Therefore I beseech you all to be very careful. Do nothing stupid that would put our school at risk of being shut down." She turned and nodded at the Hogwarts caretaker, Argus Filch, who was standing in the corner of the hall. "Mr. Filch has put up outside the hall a list of new rules and enforcements, which should adequately discourage even the most adventurous of you..." She glanced at a certain quartet of third-years at the Gryffindor table. "...from doing anything you might later regret."

With that she sat back down. James, Shane, Daryl and Dom glanced at each other. James frowned, clenching his fists under the table. He was going to get back at Michaela Black, new rules or no new rules.


	8. Like Father, Like Son

**A/N: Enjoy**

**Disclaimer: Same as before.**

**Chapter 8: Like Father, Like Son**

Albus still couldn't figure out what he had done wrong. Rose was barely talking to him. Classes had resumed and the week had progressed, and Rose was doing a very good job of avoiding and ignoring him.

"Don't worry about her, mate," said Robert as they walked through the corridor towards their Defense Against the Dark Arts class. "Girls are so unreasonable most of the time. There's no point in trying to be such good friends with them."

"But Rose is my cousin. We've always been such good friends."

Robert shrugged. "Probably because neither of you ever had any other good friends. But here it's different. There are so many other kids to become friends with, including people of your own gender."

Albus had no reply to this.

"Franky and I are planing on going on a little adventure this weekend. Jonathan has already agreed to come. Why don't you come with us?"

They fell silent as they rounded a corner. A pair of older students in Gryffindor robes were arguing about something. "Look, I don't care if you want to go eat each meal with the Ravenclaws. I've made friends with other Gryffindors, and I would like to eat with them."

"Typical, Marcus, trying to be such good friends with the older kids. But it's the ones in our own year that we have classes with, and they don't like us."

"That's your problem, Mic. I really don't care what they think."

"It's not a matter of caring what they think. It's a matter of being stuck around them all the time."

As Albus and Robert made to round the next corner they spotted James. He appeared to be lurking, looking around the corner at the pair of arguing students.

"Alright there, James?" Albus asked.

James looked at him and pressed a finger to his lips, then waved him away. Albus frowned and kept walking with Robert, wondering what was going on with his brother.

They entered the DADA class. Rose was already there, sitting with Allison in the front row, predictably. Robert led Albus to where the other Gryffindor boys were sitting, two rows behind them. Albus wound up sitting right along the center isle, opposite Sean Anderson on the Ravenclaw side.

"Welcome," said Professor Brant. "I trust you have all come prepared for another class in defensive magic. But today I hope that you have also all come with a degree of self-confidence, ready to try a spell yourselves."

The first-years glanced at each other with varying degrees of confidence. On either side of the isle in the third row, both Albus and Sean looked quite at ease.

Brant caught sight of them. "Mind you, I did not say 'cockiness' or 'over-confidence.' If any of you had come here already masters in magical defense I trust you would not be sitting in this class right now. I know that some of you are starting off more talented than others, but I nevertheless expect you to treat each other with equal respect, as you will all be learning these defensive spells at the same pace.

"Now then, the most important basic method of defense is, of course, disarming. Without a wand the enemy will usually be incapable of performing many spells, and at the very least will not have nearly as much power behind the spells, not being able to channel the magic well. The disarming spell is among the most popular defensive spells used in the Auror Department at the Ministry of Magic, and is even considered to be the signature spell of Harry Potter himself." Albus winced. "Today, you will all be attempting this spell. The goal is for the wand to fly away from the statue and towards you. Does anyone wish to go first?"

Albus scanned the room. No one raised a hand. Rose cleared her throat.

"Miss Weasley?"

"Um, Professor, could you please demonstrate the spell for us?"

Brant looked surprised by this request. "Demonstrate? Er, yes, of course." He slowly picked up his wand, which was always lying on the desk. On one side of the front of the room stood a stone statue clutching a wand. Professor Brant turned to the statue, the confident look on his face not quite convincing.

In a quick motion he aimed with his wand and shouted "Expelliarmus!" The wand flew up from the statue, out towards the seated first-years. In front of Albus, Leanna let out a squeak and ducked as the wand flew over her head, but Albus caught it with little effort.

"Well," said Brant, "it doesn't always work perfectly, even for Professors. Accio wand." Albus let go of the wand and it flew to the professor, who replaced it in the hand of the statue. "Now would anyone like to try?"

Once again no one raised their hand. Finally Albus did.

"Ah, of course, Mr. Potter. Please, come up."

Rose turned and shot him a glare as he stood up, but he did his best to ignore it. Striding confidently to the front of the room, he raised his wand and took aim at the statue.

He had, of course, been taught this spell by his father. Harry, who was both greatly admired and greatly envied throughout wizarding Britain, had made sure that each of his sons knew a few basic defense spells by the time they came to Hogwarts, and would do the same with Lily when the time came.

"Expelliarmus!" The wand shot out of the statue's hand, spiraling through

the air. He caught it effortlessly.

"Well done, Mr. Potter!" said Professor Brant, applauding. The rest of the

class applauded as well.

Albus turned and looked at them, smiling. Then his gaze fell on Rose, and

the smile died on his face. She wasn't applauding. She was glaring at him.

"Thank you, Mr. Potter. Would anyone else like to try?" Albus looked away from Rose and replaced the wand in the statue's hand, then returned to his seat. "Yes, Mr. Anderson."

Sean got up and walked steadily to the front of the room. He turned to the statue and pointed his wand. "Expelliarmus!" The wand flew and he caught it, just as easily as Albus had.

Brant applauded again, as did the class.

Brant asked for more volunteers. Albus waited for Rose to raise her hand. He didn't know whether she already knew this spell or not, but he figured she would at least want a go. Yet she remained in her seat, simply watching.

Jonathan went up, but was unable to make the wand do more than move slightly in the statue's grip. Robert made an attempt, and caused the wand to fall out of the statue's hand. Franky simply sat back in his seat, showing no interest in attempting the spell, but watching each of his classmates intently as they tried.

Finally at the end of class Rose raised her hand. She got up slowly and faced the statue. She got up slowly and faced the statue, raising her wand. "Expelliarmus!" The wand flew up and smacked into the wall beside the statue. She sat back down immediately, her face quickly turning red.

Brant addressed the class. "Well done. Well done everyone. I must say I am very impressed by what you have shown me today, and I have great confidence that you will master the basic defensive spells very quickly. That will be all for today. You may go."

Rose got up quickly and raced out of the classroom, before Albus could make a move. Allison ran out after her.

"Well done, Albus," said Sean.

Albus turned to face him across the isle. "Thank you. You too."

The Ravenclaw nodded to him, then departed with his friends.

* * *

><p>"You're very lucky I'm a squib, Potter," Filch threatened furiously.<p>

James looked at him impatiently. This was not at all the result he had planned for his first revenge attempt on Black.

"I knew that it would be you. The first to break the new set of rules. It had to be you." The old squib shook his cane at the boy, who didn't even flinch. He was very used to getting Filch angry.

"Now, the question is, how should I punish you?" The caretaker unfurled a scroll of parchment. "Some very intriguing ideas the professors came up with for enforcing our new rules." He scanned the list. "I find Professor Markan's detention idea particularly... entertaining." He glared at James. "A month of serving the house-elves in the kitchens every night should humble you, Potter."

James' eyes widened. "What?"

"You heard me, Potter. Only too well. I expect you in the kitchens tonight." With that he turned and limped away, leaving James glaring at his back.

* * *

><p>"You had to show off, didn't you?" said Rose.<p>

Albus stared at her in confusion. Show off? All he had done was volunteer when nobody else did. He hadn't been intending to show off.

"The son of Harry Potter," Rose went on. She turned to the other first-years seated around them in the common room. "Look at him. Admire him. Just like his father, isn't he? The best of us." She returned her glare to Albus. "And he's going to keep on proving it to us."

"Rose, what are you talking about?"

"She's right, mate," said Franky. The moment Albus looked at him he looked away. "Even the most devoted admirers of your father admit that he had a bit of a problem with showing off."

Albus glared at him furiously. "All you know of my father is what the Prophet prints." He stood up abruptly. "That's all any of you know about him!" He stormed towards the portrait hole and left the common room, the other first-years watching him go.

"Albus, wait up!" Robert followed him through the portrait hole and chased him down the moving staircases of the Grand Staircase.

Albus rounded on him, striding back up a few steps. "What? Do you want to declare yourself a 'devoted admirer' of my father, no matter what you know and don't know about him?"

"He didn't mean it like that," said Robert, holding his hands up placatingly.

Albus narrowed his eyes.

"Look, none of us really knows your father, except for you. All we know is that he saved all our parents from... You-Know-Who."

Albus maintained his demeanor. "At least say the name. Voldemort."

Robert winced, but complied, hesitantly. "Voldemort. Your father saved our parents from Voldemort. He saved everyone, Albus. Of course we admire him." Albus turned away from him, sitting down on a step. Robert came down to his step and sat beside him. "It's not easy being his son, is it?"

Albus grimaced, remembering talking to Rose about this two weeks before. "You have no idea."

"Everyone knows you as his son. No one knows you as you."

Albus nodded. "That's part of it."

"So make them know you as you," said Robert. "Go on your own adventures. Make your own reputation." Franky and Jonathan were coming down behind them. Robert stood up and reached his hand down towards Albus. "It would be an honor for us to adventure beside you."

"I'm not asking for any adventures."

Robert shrugged. "Might be fun."

At this Albus smiled, standing up and taking his hand. The other two boys put their hands in as well.

Franky stood up. "There's an old Daily Prophet article, from about forty years ago, that talks about a group of friends that were here at Hogwarts. Four boys from Gryffindor, who called themselves the Marauders. Made quite a bit of mischief during their time here."

Marauders? That word sounded oddly familiar in Albus's ears.

"Well, I'll be..." The first-years turned to see the Gryffindor third-years watching them. James, Shane, Daryl and Dom stood on the steps above, looking at the boys who appeared to be smaller versions of themselves. "Little marauders, huh?" It was Shane who spoke. Franky eyed him defiantly.

"Out to make some mischief of your own, Albus?" said James with a smile.

Albus shrugged. "Maybe."

"Well alright then," said Shane, stepping down to stand directly in front of the first-years. "May the best marauders win."

"What qualifies as winning?" Jonathan asked. Seven pairs of eyes stared at him.

Albus watched the two groups face off. It wasn't exactly what he would have thought of as a way to enjoy himself. But hey, might be fun.

* * *

><p>"You see, Marcus? They hate us, and you can't escape it any more than I can."<p>

Marcus followed his sister hastily as she stormed down the hall towards the library. They were long overdue to meet Sarah, having been held up by a prank by James Potter that had caused Marcus to have to make a quick trip to the hospital wing. Madam Bell was apparently quite adept by now at undoing Potter's pranks.

When they finally reached the library, Sarah was already on her way out. "Oh. So you two decided to show up?" She made to walk past them, but Michaela held out an arm and gently blocked her path.

"We're really sorry. Potter tried something."

Sarah searched her friend's dark-brown eyes. "Oh."

"Are you leaving?"

Sarah shrugged apologetically. "I should be getting back up to my common room."

"Can we come with you?"

Sarah frowned. "That's against the rules."

"So?"

Sarah eyed her for a moment. "If we run into Filch..."

"Leave that to me," said Michaela. _The enemy of my enemy..._

Sarah looked at her for another moment, then shrugged. "Okay." She led them towards Ravenclaw Tower.

They had nearly made it to the bronze eagle knocker when he caught them on the spiral staircase. By then it was only Ravenclaws around them, who were staring at the two Gryffindors strangely.

"You two aren't supposed to be here!" said the caretaker, pulling out his scroll of punishments.

Michaela looked at him sympathetically. "You're right," she said in an apologetic tone. "We're sorry."

Filch paused, taken aback by this response.

Michaela stepped down a few stairs towards him, maintaining her sympathetic look. "It's not easy, is it? Your job."

Filch looked at her strangely. He couldn't remember anyone ever asking him that before. "No, it's not," he replied.

"Especially since James Potter came along."

"You can say that again," said the squib. "Though there were some tough ones before him. You can bet there were."

"I'm sure there were," said Michaela with the utmost sympathy.

"Oh, some of the messes I've had to clean up. You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"And we all have to deal with James Potter's pranks. They hurt everyone."

Filch nodded, glancing around Michaela at her brother. "Wasn't very nice, what he did to you back there. Not at all."

Marcus nodded. "It was very painful." In actuality he had been just fine. It hadn't hurt much at all. But, best to play along with Michaela's game.

For perhaps the first time in his life, Filch looked sympathetic.

"And you can understand," said Michaela, "why we would not want to return to our own common room and have to deal with him."

Filch grimaced. "Yes, that I can understand." He hesitated, fighting with himself. "Well, the Sorting Hat decides where you ought to be. But..." His shoulders slumped. "Alright, I'll make an exception for you two. Just..." He squinted, half turning away from her. "Just don't do anything stupid."

She smiled with genuine gratitude. "Thank you."

He nodded, then resumed his manner and briskly turned away, limping back down the spiral staircase.

Michaela turned back to her brother and her friend. Sarah was laughing into her hand, and Marcus was smiling with eyebrows raised. Michaela winked at them, then gestured them onwards.

They reached the bronze eagle knocker.

"In blackest black exists a light.

At darkest hour of the night,

When all is lost, there's something there

That makes everything still seem so fair."

"Hope," answered Sarah.

"Your intellect shines brightly." The door opened.

"Awesome," said Michaela, highly impressed by the manner of entrance. It would have taken her far longer to solve that riddle.

"Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure," Sarah sang as she led the way into the common room.

Michaela and Marcus looked around the common room with wonder. It was more spacious than the Gryffindor Common Room. Blue and bronze curtains lined the large, arching windows. The blue ceiling was painted with stars, and the carpet was a midnight-blue color that Michaela absolutely adored.

"Wow." She walked to the blue couch in the center of the room and sat down, Marcus and Sarah following. "We were sorted into the wrong house," she said to her brother.

Marcus raised his eyebrows.

"Forget Gryffindor." She raised her arms. "I hereby declare myself a Ravenclaw!" she said loudly.

Around the common room, Ravenclaws were turning and looking at her strangely.

"I don't think you can do that," said Marcus quietly.

An older Ravenclaw approached them. Michaela remembered Sarah pointing him out as her older brother, the captain of the Ravenclaw Quidditch Team.

"Who's your friend, Sarah?" he asked his sister, looking down at Michaela curiously.

Michaela stood up and held out her hand. "Michaela Black."

He looked at her, then down at her hand. "Michaela?" He reached out and clasped her hand in his. "Sam Anderson. Pleased to meet you."

* * *

><p>Hermione looked around at her friends. She was generally not particularly comfortable in the spotlight. But of course this happened at least once every year, for today was her birthday.<p>

Ron sat beside her, while Harry and Ginny sat on the other side of the table, and Neville and Hannah on one adjacent side with Luna and her husband Rolf Scamander on the other. The children were all at some other party for one of their little friends.

Luna was in the process of telling her friends about strange magical creatures in South America, where she and Rolf had just returned from to celebrate with Hermione.

Ron and Ginny were sharing a bottle of firewhiskey. Hermione had decided not to drink tonight, and Harry was drinking only very moderately, occasionally taking a sip. Surprisingly, it was Rolf and Hannah who were drinking the most, though they were both as quiet as ever on the outskirts of the group of friends.

After a dinner and several rounds of toasting in Hermione's honor, during each of which the Weasley siblings tried to come up with a better compliment for her, the four couples moved into the sitting room. Rolf and Hannah sat back and let their friends talk, and after a while both started to doze. The Weasley siblings had each other in stitches, joking and bickering in turn. Hermione laughed along with them, anxious to enjoy herself on a special night with her friends. Harry laughed as well, quietly. Hermione couldn't help but notice that there was an unusual look on his face sometimes. He was puzzled about something, and it was bothering him terribly.

When they finally noticed that their spouses had fallen asleep, Neville and Luna both decided that it was time to go, and apparated away while holding on to their significant others. The Potters and Weasleys gathered on the floor for a few games of cards.

By the time they had tired of this, Ron and Ginny were just about out, leaning against each other in the center of the sitting room. Harry and Hermione sat back against a couch and watched their spouses laugh themselves to sleep.

"Happy birthday, Hermione," Harry said quietly.

"Thanks, Harry." She looked at him, studying his face. That look was present again. "Something's bothering you." It wasn't a question.

He nodded. "There is a girl in James' year at Hogwarts. Last name is Black."

Hermione's eyes widened. "Black?" She stared at nothing, remembering Sirius, and then the words of Phineas Nigellus Black from his portrait after Sirius' death. Certainly this new Black couldn't be from the same family. "Have you gone to Grimmauld Place?"

Harry shook his head. He hadn't had the chance to. He hadn't been back to Grimmauld Place since the war.

"Ron and Ginny are taking Hugo and Lily over to the Burrow Saturday night," said Hermione. "We'll go then."

"We?"

She nodded firmly. "Yes. We."


	9. Return to Grimmauld Place

**A/N: Introducing... the villain! No suspense here xD. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as... well, alright, let's just say same as always this time, as it always will be. As much as I'd like to say I own Grimmauld Place, such is not the case.**

**Chapter 9: Return to Grimmauld Place**

"Severus Snape?"

"We didn't kill you."

The dust replica of Albus Dumbledore disintegrated. Harry and Hermione shared a glance. They would have to have that trap removed.

The place did not appear to be nearly as much of a mess as Harry remembered. Kreacher popped in occasionally from his post in the Hogwarts kitchens to dust and make sure everything stayed in place. The house had been ransacked during the war. After the Death Eater Yaxley had clung to Hermione's robes when she apparated here from the Ministry of Magic twenty years ago, the Death Eaters had gained access. There was no doubt that Voldemort had sent them here to look for any clues as to where Harry might have been hiding at the time. The first time Kreacher had returned to the house after the war, he had tried to clean up and fix as much as he could, then reported to Harry what had happened.

The large serpent-shaped chandelier in the front hallway was gone, having been broken beyond repair in the attack, and most of the gas lamps had been destroyed. Glancing into the dining room, Harry could tell that the table had been broken and then repaired somewhat unstably, and the dresser had been smashed. Spiders were once again living amongst the splintered wood, and since Kreacher did not mind their presence, he did not seek to disturb them by repairing the dresser. Harry was thankful that Ron had not come here with them, as he would have had a fit upon seeing them.

Taking care not to trip over the troll-foot-shaped umbrella stand that stood beside the moth-eaten velvet curtains that covered the portrait of Walburga Black, Harry and Hermione made their way up the stairs. Hermione did her best not to look at the house-elf heads mounted on the wall plaques.

They entered the drawing room, which, compared to the dining room below, looked to be in okay condition, although a couple of chairs were gone and most of the curtains in front of the windows had been destroyed. The fireplace was intact, as was, thankfully, the tapestry of the Black family tree. Apparently the Death Eaters had had enough respect for the Black family that they would not defile the tapestry, or at the very least the powerful Death Eater Bellatrix Lestrange, who was on the tapestry, had forbidden them to do so.

Harry studied the tapestry, which contained the Black family members from as far back as the Middle Ages all the way to Scorpius Malfoy, whose grandmother, Narcissa, was a Black. Side branches featuring the families that the women had married into and continued were not displayed, simply running off the sides of the tapestry, except for Narcissa's family, which was likely done by the tree itself so that it could continue growing despite the extinction of the male line.

Over time the tree had adjusted itself so that the most recent generations were displayed most prominently in the tapestry. The seven generations beginning with Phineas Nigellus Black and going on to Scorpius covered most of the space. It was dotted with seven large black spots where names had been blasted, stemming the growth of the tree at these points. Sirius had been blasted from the tapestry by his own mother, as had Andromeda Black, the grandmother of Teddy Lupin.

There was no sign anywhere on the tapestry of Michaela Black, or a line that could have led to her.

"We don't know what happened to the Blacks who were blasted off the tapestry," said Hermione, "except for Sirius and Andromeda."

"Cedrella Black married a Weasley," Harry reminded her. "Your own children are descended from her."

"Oh... right."

"And Sirius told me that his uncle Alphard was blasted off after he had died, for giving Sirius money when he ran away. He didn't have any children."

That left three black spots unaccounted for. Although since Isla Black had married into a Muggle family, her descendents would have borne the Muggle name, not the name Black. So the ancestor of Michaela Black, if she was a member of this family, was most likely either Phineas Black, the son of Phineas Nigellus, or Marius Black. Phineas had been blasted off for supporting Muggle rights, while Marius had been blasted off for being a squib.

"I can look for information on these two," said Hermione.

Harry turned to her. "Are you sure?"

Hermione nodded. "It will be a nice distraction."

* * *

><p>"Is there really a giant squid in this lake?" asked Jonathan.<p>

Franky nodded. "Yep."

Jonathan took a step away from the water's edge. The boys were walking around the lake. The sun was setting, but the boys had decided they would wait right until curfew before going inside, or perhaps try to sneak in afterwards.

From here the Forbidden Forest could be clearly seen on the edge of the grounds. As the boys walked around the lake Robert glanced towards it eagerly.

"Let's go in there," he said, pointing.

The boys followed his gaze. "The Forbidden Forest?" Albus asked uncertainly.

Robert nodded. "The Forbidden Forest."

Franky looked uneasy. Jonathan's face was blank.

"We'll be fine," Robert insisted, glancing at Albus's wand for his own assurance. "Come on."

He started off towards the forest, and Albus and Jonathan followed. Franky hesitated for a moment before following as well.

* * *

><p>"Are you okay?" Harry asked. They had stepped out of the drawing room, back onto the landing in front of the stairs.<p>

Hermione sat down on the steps. "It must be nice," she said heavily, "having a family tree that large."

Harry sat down beside her. "I wouldn't know."

She smiled sadly at him, then rested her head on his shoulder. "I wish you knew what it is like to have parents."

He gave a grim smile. "I wish you didn't know what it is like to lose parents."

She shut her eyes tightly against the tears. Nevertheless, Harry felt his shirt become wet. He wrapped an arm around her tightly.

They sat like that for some time, then Harry spoke again. "I never gave you my birthday present to you."

Hermione frowned. "Yes you did." She recalled the decorated bowl that Harry and Ginny had given her the night of her birthday.

"That was from me and Ginny," Harry explained, reaching into his pocket. "This one is from me." He pulled out a gold chain with a small gold amulet hanging from it. The amulet was decorated with a star and engraved with runes.

Hermione stared at it. "It's beautiful." She reached out a finger and traced the runes.

"It's a new advancement in pensieve technology," said Harry. "You choose a memory, the very best one you can think of, and whenever you're feeling lousy and you touch the amulet, the memory will begin to play in your mind. And the amulet will keep that memory protected forever. But you can switch which memory is placed inside."

Hermione's face brightened considerably, and she gave a wide smile. She liked the idea of this amulet a lot. "Wow. Thank you so much."

He caught her staring at the runes. "I asked the inventor about those runes. He said they're from some old group of elves."

"The Sylvar," said Hermione. Harry chuckled to himself. Of course she would know. She was one of the few who had taken the Ancient Runes class at Hogwarts. "They're considered the most powerful race of elves that ever existed, but it's unknown whether they still exist or not."

"Thanks for the lesson," Harry replied. "So do you know what those runes say?"

Hermione nodded. "Greatest Strength and Brightest Hope from Remembering the Past."

"Nice."

She placed the chain around her neck, tucking the amulet into her shirt. "Thank you, Harry," she said again.

"You're welcome."

Silence fell again, though this time it was a comfortable, peaceful silence that neither desired to break.

Finally Harry's stomach broke the silence. Hermione laughed softly. "Dinner time?"

He nodded, though he was loathe to break the peaceful stillness that surrounded them.

"Are you going to call Kreacher?"

Harry thought for a moment. "No, I think I'll try something myself. Let's see what he has stored in the kitchen."

* * *

><p>As soon as the first-years entered the forest, things became significantly darker. The massive overgrown trees blocked out most light, and Robert's resolve quickly evaporated. His pace slowed to a halt, and the first-years stood just inside the forest and glanced around fearfully.<p>

A strange, frightening sound emanated from deeper within the forest, and Franky visibly jumped.

"Let's go back," he said quickly.

Albus heard a crack. Glancing towards one of the trees, he saw a pair of large eyes peer at him from behind it. He raised his wand and pointed it at the tree.

There was another crack, and the creature that had been watching him was standing right in front of him. "Little Master?"

Albus stared down at the ancient-looking house-elf that had helped to take care of him when he was little. "Kreacher?" The house-elf was wearing a makeshift tunic made from two towels, one red and gold and the other green and silver. Around his neck hung a gold locket.

"Little Master should not be here. This forest is forbidden to all students of Hogwarts. Little Master and his friends must leave." The house-elf tried to take Albus's hand and lead him out of the forest.

"What are you doing here?" Albus asked.

Kreacher paused. He looked down. "Little Master must go back to the castle."

"You followed me down here?"

"No."

"Then what are you doing here?"

Kreacher hesitated, turning and glancing deeper into the forest. "Kreacher cannot say. Little Master must forgive him." He bent down and picked a stick up off the ground.

Albus knew what was about to happen, and caught the stick before Kreacher could hit himself with it. "Stop. You don't have to do that."

Kreacher looked at the stick dejectedly, but dropped it.

"Why can't you tell me why you are here?"

Kreacher hesitated again. "Little Master must forgive Kreacher. Kreacher cannot say because it is forbidden."

"Forbidden?"

Kreacher nodded. "Just like it is forbidden for Little Master and his friends to be in this forest. Little Master must go back to the castle."

"Forbidden by who?"

This time Kreacher looked positively distressed. "Kreacher cannot say!"

"Okay, okay," said Albus, holding up a hand. He turned to leave the forest, and his friends followed him, looking bewildered.

"Kreacher begs Little Master not to tell his father, Master Harry Potter, that he saw Kreacher in the forest."

Albus stopped and turned back. Kreacher was looking rather desperate, and Albus decided he would refrain from asking the question. "Okay."

* * *

><p>After a thorough search of the kitchen, Harry and Hermione were dismayed to find that there was no food. Of course this stood to reason, since no one lived here. But Harry had been hoping at least that Kreacher might bring some food for himself when he came here to clean.<p>

"Kreacher," he called.

* * *

><p>Kreacher suddenly vanished with a crack. Albus and his friends stared at the spot where he had been standing.<p>

"What the..." Robert began.

"Now can we leave?" asked Franky with some desperation.

Albus stared at the spot for a moment longer, then nodded. The first-years departed from the Forbidden Forest, returning quickly to the castle.

"Master Harry Potter!"

* * *

><p>"Yes?" said Harry, surprised by the house-elf's expression. "Everything alright, Kreacher?"<p>

"Yes, yes, Kreacher is alright." Seeing his master's look, the house-elf quickly added, "Kreacher was just with the Little Master, Albus Potter."

"Oh really?" Concern replaced confusion on Harry's face. "Is he alright?"

"Yes, yes, the Little Master is alright," said Kreacher. He quickly looked around the kitchen, and before Harry could ask the next question, he spoke again. "Why has Master called Kreacher?"

"There's no food here."

"Master must forgive Kreacher. Kreacher was not expecting that Master would wish to eat in his godfather's house." Kreacher had long ago stopped referring to Sirius as anything related to the family he had loyally served for so long. It was likely he would never respect Sirius, who had treated him terribly, and whom Kreacher's former mistress had disowned as a son.

"It's okay," said Harry. "But can you bring us something to eat?"

Kreacher nodded, bowing low. "Kreacher will return to the Hogwarts kitchens and bring food for Master Harry Potter and..." he hesitated, "...Mistress Weasley." It sounded very strange for the old house-elf to be referring to Hermione as 'Mistress.'

"Thank you," said Hermione graciously. Kreacher gave a sort of half-bow in her direction, then was gone with a crack.

While they waited, Harry and Hermione went back through the house, looking around and seeing what was gone and what remained, what was broken and what had been fixed. Most of the house appeared to be in fair condition. Clearly Kreacher had done a good job of trying to restore the possessions of the family he once served.

When Harry was stepping back through the front hallway, watching Hermione inspect the table in the dining room and try to fix it better, he accidently tripped over the troll-foot umbrella stand. The velvet curtains sprang open, and Harry covered his ears, anticipating the screaming of Walburga Black. He heard nothing. Frowning, Harry turned and looked at the portrait. What he saw made him freeze, the blood running cold in his veins.

* * *

><p>"I didn't know house-elves could get that old," Franky muttered. The first-years were nearly back to Gryffindor Tower. Curfew had just come to pass, and the corridors were silent and eerie.<p>

"Students out of bed! Students out of bed!" Filch came limping at them. The first-years spun around, facing the caretaker fearfully.

"Little first-years," said Filch smugly. "You shouldn't be out at this hour."

"Curfew just passed!" Franky protested.

The caretaker clucked his tongue. "Curfew is curfew." He paused, taking a close look at Albus. "You're James Potter's little brother, aren't you? I might have guessed."

Albus knew that his brother had made an enemy in Filch. This did not bode well.

Filch pulled the Punishment Parchment out from beneath his cloak. "Now let's see what your punishment shall be."

* * *

><p>"Harry Potter," came the cold, high-pitched voice of Lord Voldemort. Harry couldn't move, so shocked he was by the sight. Where once the horribly ugly old woman who had been Sirius's mother had stood in the life-size portrait, the Dark Lord now stood, glaring menacingly at the Boy Who Lived.<p>

The background of the portrait was a terrifying scene. Flashes of green light were flying everywhere, and Muggles were shown being struck and falling. Houses were burning, and amidst the columns of smoke horrible creatures flew, black shadows in the dark night.

"Harry?" Hermione came out of the dining room, wondering what Harry was staring at. She too froze when she saw the portrait.

Voldemort laughed. "Did you really think I could ever be gone for good, Potter? There are so many ways to exist after death, and to come back. You destroyed all my horcruxes, and then killed me, and thought I was finished? I am both impressed and disappointed."

Harry finally recovered from his shock, and frowned at the portrait. "You're just a portrait. You can hardly cause me any harm."

The Dark Lord laughed again, ceaselessly amused. "You never fail to surprise me, Potter. How can you be so powerful, and yet appear so ignorant. All that power without knowledge is very dangerous. Just ask your Mudblood friend behind you."

Harry tensed as he sensed Hermione flinch. "You can do nothing to me."

"Not from this portrait, no. But I am not just in this portrait. And my servants will forever remain loyal to me. You will never be rid of me, Potter. I am the true ruler of the Wizarding World."

"I'd say I've done a pretty good job of rounding up your loyal servants," said Harry defiantly.

Still the Dark Lord laughed. "The weaker ones, yes. The ones you know as Death Eaters. As always, you badly underestimate my power."

At this Harry fell silent. He had already dealt with dozens of facets of Voldemort's power. What more could he have?

Voldemort leaned forward within the portrait. His voice came out in a frosty, conspiratorial tone that sent goosebumps running along Harry's spine. "The heart of my power now lies within Hogwarts itself. Keep a close eye on your elder son, Potter."

Just then a crack sounded, and Kreacher appeared beside Harry. "Master Harry Potter, Kreacher has brought food for—" The house-elf saw the portrait, and his eyes widened. He brought a hand up to clutch the locket around his neck.

"Kreacher the house-elf!" The Dark Lord laughed again. "So this is how you found my locket, Potter."

Kreacher stared at the portrait with wide eyes. He shook furiously. "Nooo! My mistress! They took the portrait of my mistress!" A wave of energy blasted from the house-elf to the portrait. The wave deflected off the portrait and flew back at Harry, Hermione and Kreacher, who were sent flying backwards against the far wall.

The unbearable laughter continued. In a flash Kreacher was on his feet again, and swung his arm in a violent motion, and the velvet curtains shut, covering the portrait once more. The laughter finally ceased.

Harry and Hermione got to their feet, staring at the curtains. Kreacher let out a wail. "My mistress! They took my mistress!" He threw himself to the floor and began banging his head. "Kreacher failed. He failed to protect her."

"Kreacher, stop!" yelled Harry, wrenching the house-elf up off the ground.

"Noooo!" Kreacher wailed.

"Kreacher, I order you to return to Hogwarts and continue working."

Kreacher finally regained control of himself. Bowing, he disappeared with a crack.

Harry and Hermione shared a long look, then Harry looked back at the curtains.

"Harry?" Hermione's voice sounded unnaturally soft. He turned back to her. "Does your scar hurt?"

Harry put his hand up to the scar. It hadn't bothered him during the whole encounter. "No."

Hermione looked worried. "If the connection was broken when the horcrux within you was destroyed, then Voldemort could somehow have come back without you being able to realize it."

"How?"

Hermione shrugged hopelessly. "Voldemort delved deeper into the darkest secrets of magic than any other wizard. Who knows what powerful magic he alone knew?"

"As if the horcruxes weren't enough," Harry muttered. But at the moment he was more concerned by something else. What had Voldemort meant when he said that the heart of his power was within Hogwarts? And how was James in danger?

Harry suddenly felt sick to his stomach. He felt weaker than he had ever felt before, not knowing the danger or even if there was a danger.

One thing was clear. If something bad was going to happen to James, it was going to happen at Hogwarts. That was where he had to be.


	10. Tricks and Treats

**A/N: Hey all. Sorry for not getting this to you last night, I didn't get back til late. Anyway, this chapter is entirely from Albus's POV, in a more Rowling-esque narrative, but it's an eventful one. Enjoy! And, Happy Halloween ;)**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 10: Tricks and Treats**

September ended and October flew by. Both of the Potter boys were stuck in detentions, which sapped up a great deal of their free time. James was stuck working in the kitchens, helping the house-elves, the punishment that Professor Markan had designed. Albus found himself working in the Transfiguration room with the strict Professor Cambian.

The Professor taught Albus a simple spell for reverting transfigured objects to their original forms. He was constantly experimenting with new transfigurations, and once he tired of a particular variation he would give the object to Albus to return to its original form and put back in place. Albus had to admit that he was impressed by some of the transfigurations, and found some of the objects that Cambian created to be quite fantastic, but nevertheless he would much rather have been doing something else with his free time.

Rose had softened her attitude towards him. She was now proceeding with polite indifference, still spending all her time with Allison and the other Gryffindor girls. Albus had been more careful about showing off, keeping a low profile, which disappointed some of Harry Potter's admirers. When Sean Anderson had approached him, followed by a group of Ravenclaws, and asked about doing a joint demonstration of spells they knew, Albus had politely refused, seeing Rose glaring at him from farther down the corridor.

"It will be fun to duel with you some time," said Sean.

Albus raised his eyebrows. "Duel? Yeah, maybe."

"Not as enemies, I mean, obviously," added Sean. "I mean we're not trying to kill each other."

"Right," said Albus, still looking at Rose, who had turned away from him and was talking to Allison.

"Alright, see you around," said Sean, departing with the other Ravenclaws in tow.

"Bye."

Albus wasn't sure he was ready to duel anyone, even another first-year. Nevertheless he liked the idea of having a rival. He and Sean were clearly starting out atop their year in DADA, and it would be fun to compete with him.

In other classes, however, Albus was not having quite as much luck. He was able to do well in Transfiguration, imitating what he saw Professor Cambian do in detention, but Herbology was a bit of a nightmare. Albus simply didn't have a head for the stuff, and he found the plants that Neville was so fascinated with to be quite mundane.

Potions was also not much fun, although in that class at least Albus could acknowledge that it was much worse for someone else than for him. Alexander Zarin suffered ceaselessly in here, under the very-very-very-watchful eye of his uncle. The Head of Slytherin seemed to have no qualms about taking points from his own house whenever his nephew took the slightest step out of line. Though Alexander was always the most successful student in the potions class, the professor rarely acknowledged his success, and continuously burdened him with the most work. Albus found himself feeling bad for the Slytherin, despite how obnoxious he was outside of the classroom.

The morning of Halloween found Albus sitting with the other Gryffindors in Charms class, glaring at the back of Rose's head. He had woken up in a foul mood this morning, with a horrendous smell emanating from the third-year boys' dorm and filling the entire boys' half of the tower. Almost all the boys in Gryffindor had quickly fled into the common room, where the words 'Jamie needs some clean underwear,' were written in bright blue on the ceiling. Albus had looked around for his brother, but he was nowhere to be seen.

In Charms class things got worse. Flitwick gave them each a large sign saying 'Happy Halloween,' and their objective was to get the sign to flash bright orange. Albus's first attempt set his sign on fire, drawing chuckles from the surrounding students. While he looked sheepishly at his sign, Rose achieved the goal on her own first attempt. She then went on to help others who were having trouble, happily showing them how to do it. Flitwick praised her. Albus glared at her.

"So you think I have a problem with showing off?"

Rose looked up at him. He was glaring down at her from across the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall, having come here for lunch after class.

She looked at him only for a moment, then looked down. "You're right," she said softly.

Albus immediately softened, surprised.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I shouldn't have been so hard on you. Everyone shows off sometimes."

He sat down across from her. "It's okay." He reached out his hand towards his cousin. She smiled at him and shook it.

"Albus?" said a quiet voice. Albus turned and was shocked to see that the voice belonged to his brother. "Can I sit here?"

"Sure," said Albus, wondering if the sky was falling. What in the world had possessed James to want to sit next to him?

James sat down quickly, glancing to his left and right. Albus noted that up and down the table people were casting glances at him, as though he were something ugly.

"James, mate," said Shane, sitting down next to Rose, "she's got you bad this time. It will take a while for the other Gryffindors to forget about this."

"I'm going to kill her," said James, his voice a low growl that he used at home to frighten Albus and Lily.

Shane chuckled. "Not a bad idea, mate, though perhaps a little extreme."

"Nonsense," said James. "She's got Filch running at me at every turn. I'm never going to get out of the kitchens. And now this?" He gestured up and down the Gryffindor table.

A small shadow fell over the table. Albus and James looked up to see Alexander Zarin standing behind Rose and Shane. The Slytherin looked bizarrely out of place standing at the Gryffindor table.

"I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Halloween," said the Slytherin, sounding not quite kind. "May we all receive some pleasant treats..." He looked at James and winked. "...in response to our tricks."

He reached down and picked up the four Gryffindors' goblets, filling them each with pumpkin juice, then handed them back. With a wave of his wand he conjured a goblet for himself, and the Gryffindors were shocked by the level of magic that the first-year could perform.

"A toast!" he declared. "To trickery and terror on this scariest of nights."

James and Shane shared a look. "Here, here!" they chanted enthusiastically. Then as Alexander, Albus and Rose all drank, James and Shane swung their goblets towards the Slytherin, covering him in pumpkin juice.

Alexander froze, the pumpkin juice trickling down his face and robes. Then all of a sudden his uncle was behind him. "Alexander," said the professor, his tone frostier than ice. "Follow me."

Alexander frowned, but nevertheless followed his uncle out of the Great Hall, holding his head high despite the looks he was getting from the surrounding students as the pumpkin juice dripped from him.

"Why did you do that?" asked Albus, still feeling bad for Alexander for what occurred each potions class.

James shrugged. "On a toast to trickery? How could we not?" Shane laughed.

Professor Markan swept by, and winked at James in passing. James smiled back, then muttered under his breath after the professor had passed. "Bloody house-elf-loving old git."

"So what are you going to do about her?" Shane asked.

James thought for a moment, then smiled wickedly. He turned to Albus. "Meet me at the entrance to Gryffindor Tower midway through the feast tonight." And with that he got up and left the Great Hall, casting a quick glance towards the Ravenclaw table as he did so. Shane got up and followed him. Albus and Rose glanced at each other, at a complete loss for what that was about.

After lunch they rushed off to History of Magic. The lesson had barely begun before Albus was wishing with all his being that he hadn't come. For it just so happened that Halloween night thirty-six years ago was the night that Voldemort attacked Godric's Hollow and killed his grandparents, and the night that Harry Potter had performed his first great miracle, causing the Dark Lord's power to break, and it was exactly this topic that Professor Binns had chosen to discuss today. All around the room, all through the lesson, Gryffindor and Hufflepuff students were shooting glances at him. Rose flinched when the ghost described the deaths of James and Lily Potter, and Albus shut his eyes tightly against the imagery. When the students started asking questions about Harry Potter, Albus tried to drown out their voices. It was inarguably the worst class he had endured all year.

Muggle Studies brought some reprieve. Professor Markan talked about the Muggle customs for the night of Halloween, such as dressing up as magical beings and trying to scare each other, and going out in search of treats. He compared several Muggle images of vampires with an image of an actual vampire, which looked very similar to a human, but for the unnaturally pale skin and the elongated teeth.

For the second half of class, however, Markan had something very different planned. Several house-elves appeared in the classroom, with food in various states of preparation. Harry Dursley stared with wide eyes at the house-elves, having never seen one before. Markan began explaining about how the house-elves each year had to prepare the Hogwarts Halloween feast.

"That is their role," said Franky. "That's what they do."

Markan frowned. "Perhaps, but that does not mean they should not be helped, and thus be relieved of some of their burden. A little toil every now and then is good for everyone's soul. Now then, help out and earn points for your houses, or else sit back and watch the house-elves toil and lose points."

The first-years hesitantly set to work. Albus and Rose made their way over to a young house-elf who was plucking the feathers from some kind of giant bird. They began helping him.

"Thank you, Little Masters," said the house-elf graciously.

Once their little episode of community service was over the first-years left the classroom in a huff.

"Now I think I understand my mother a little better," said Rose. "She was right to try to help the house-elves' situation. That's such difficult work that they're forced to do."

"Someone has to do it," Albus muttered.

"But Professor Markan is right," Rose protested. "If everyone chipped in just a little bit for the common good, we could get everything done without having to enslave the house-elves."

"When did he say that?" asked Albus. "All he said was that a little work was good for the soul. Besides, what would the house-elves do then?"

"Work for themselves," Rose replied, as though it were completely obvious, which it kind of was.

They made their way back to Gryffindor Tower. The common room was now decorated with unnatural shadows and jack-o-lanterns. Albus and Rose spotted their cousin Molly on the couch, her nose buried in a book, and made their way over.

"Hi, Molly."

Molly lowered the book, and Albus and Rose screamed simultaneously. Her eyes were gone, the dark, empty sockets blinking at them. There was something black and gooey coming out of her mouth.

"Stay away." Her voice was a terribly strained whisper.

Albus and Rose couldn't move, staring at her in shock. Suddenly there was a horrible shriek, and an icy-cold hand grabbed each of them from behind. Albus and Rose screamed again and spun around.

"Dominique!"

Dominique laughed delightedly. Molly laughed as well, undoing the charms on her face so that it returned to normal.

Rose reached out and slapped her arm. "That wasn't funny!"

"Oh yes it was," said Dominique, still laughing.

"Well, at least now we know you guys care about me," said Molly.

Rose rounded on her. "How could we not? You're our cousin!"

"Of course, of course," said Molly, finally starting to overcome her laughter. Dominique was still practically in stitches.

Rose gave a huff and stormed to the opposite side of the common room, where she sat down at one of the study tables with her arms crossed. Albus followed her.

"Rose, everything alright?" It was Allison, approaching Rose with a look of concern.

"Everything's fine," Albus answered curtly for her.

Rose waved her wand, producing a spark which singed Albus's hand. "Yes, I'm alright, Allison. Thank you."

Allison hesitated for a moment, watching Albus, who was now rubbing his hand angrily.

"Sit with us," said Rose, gesturing towards the seat on the opposite side of her from Albus.

Albus glared at his cousin.

They spent the time leading up to the feast sitting like that, Rose chatting with both her cousin and her friend, Albus responding pleasantly to her but curtly to Allison, and Allison responding pleasantly to both regardless of Albus's sourness. Albus found her persistent pleasantness to be quite maddening. Finally, after it had become quite clear that Rose was paying more attention to Allison than to him, he could take no more, and got up and went down to the Great Hall early.

A cluster of Slytherin first-years stood outside the entrance. Once again Albus noted that Scorpius was not among them. He caught Alexander shooting him a glare, and once more felt bad for him.

A group of Gryffindor fourth-year boys were already sitting at the table, along with one boy who Albus recognized as being in James' year. The third-year boy saw him and waved at him, and Albus waved back, guessing that the third-year recognized him as James' brother.

Albus sat a little ways away. The third-year came over to him. "Have you seen your brother?"

Albus shook his head. "Not since lunch, no."

"Oh," said the third-year with some disappointment. "Well, I suppose he'll be showing up soon for the feast."

Albus wasn't so sure about this. James wanted Albus to meet him midway through the feast, which probably meant that he would be spending the first half of the feast preparing whatever he had planned.

He wasn't sure he should be telling the third-year this, but he didn't want him to be disappointed when James didn't show up. "I don't think so."

The third-year perked up a little. "Why?"

"I'm supposed to meet him at the entrance to Gryffindor Tower midway through the feast."

"I see," said the third-year. Albus noted that he seemed to have an American accent. "Well, alright. Thanks." With that he got up and left the table. But he didn't seem to be heading for the exit, rather he seemed to be heading towards the Ravenclaw table.

Albus found this a little strange, but forgot about it as soon as he saw Robert, Franky and Jonathan enter the Great Hall. He waved to them and they came over.

"Alright, mate," said Robert, sitting down beside him. Franky and Jonathan sat on the other side of the table.

The feast commenced. It was a spectacular sight. Bats flew into the Great Hall and flitted about, while orang streamers levitated up from the ground and zoomed to and fro. Pumpkins appeared around the candles near the magical roof. More pumpkins appeared on the tables, filled with candy treats. Parts of the meal appeared to be laced with dragon dust, which was not something the Hogwarts house-elves usually used when cooking, and to Albus many of the foods present tasted like treacle tarts.

He enjoyed the feast so much that he nearly forgot to go meet James. But when the feast was half-over he remembered, and left the Great Hall despite the questioning looks from his friends.

"You're late, as usual," said his brother when Albus located him near the Grand Staircase.

"Sorry," muttered Albus. "The feast was good."

James nodded. "Yeah, it always is." He seemed preoccupied with whatever was about to occur. "Come on."

But as soon as James and Albus stepped onto the first staircase, everything was plunged into darkness. James immediately drew his wand, looking around. Albus drew his wand as well, but couldn't see anything except his brother and the stairs beneath their feet.

They felt the staircase begin to move, unable to see where it was going. James was peering in every direction warily.

"Does this usually happen here on Halloween?" Albus asked.

"No," James muttered.

Just then a flash of purple light shot at James. He ducked, moving up several stairs as a streak of white lightning struck the step he had just been standing on. Albus quickly moved up to stand beside his brother.

Two more jets of purple shot at them, and James pushed Albus away from him before dodging both bolts. "Run!" he shouted to Albus.

Albus started running up the stairs. But just then they started moving again, and Albus had no idea where he was going. He heard James shout from below, "Protego!"

Something was wrong. He should have reached a landing by now. But the stairs just kept going. He heard footsteps, and turned to see James running up after him. More jets of light shot at them from all directions, and at one point Albus threw himself to the stairs to avoid being hit. The spells weren't just purple anymore. Bolts of blue and red had joined them, along with an occasional jet of gold light. Albus had never heard of a spell that produced gold light, but he definitely did not want to find out what spell it was.

The Potter boys ran and ran, but the stairs kept going. They were by this point hopelessly lost within the tower in a place neither of them had ever been before, unable to see anything.

Finally James stopped. "Protego!" he shouted again as three spells fired at him. Rather than bouncing off the shield, the spells simply disappeared when they contacted it, but that was just as well. "Lumos Maxima!"

A blinding flash forced both boys to cover their eyes, as the light from James wand appeared to be reflecting back at them from mirrors very close to them on all sides. James quickly put out the light, and the boys could see once more, though only each other.

James tried another spell. "Lumos Solem!" A beam of sunlight shot from his wand, passing about four feet in front of him and then suddenly deflecting back right into his eyes. He let out a yell and dropped his wand. The beam disappeared as the wand fell down a few steps into the darkness.

Another jet of purple light was shooting at James. "Protego!" Albus shouted. A weak, silvery shield appeared, but it was still enough to absorb the spell, though it disappeared immediately after. Albus ducked as a jet of blue light flew over his head.

James descended several steps until he located his wand. Albus ran down to him. Suddenly there was a boom from behind them, and the boys turned to see a bright green light appear.

Then it was over. The darkness vanished and they were back near the entrance to the tower, exactly where they had been standing when the darkness first appeared. It was as though nothing at all had happened.

The Potter boys looked down. A black band lay across the step they were standing on, with three golden Ws shining brightly on it.

There was laughter. At the top of the staircase stood a girl with dark hair and dark eyes. There was a look of endless amusement on her face.

"That was fun, Jamie," she said, still laughing. Albus felt goosebumps rise on his skin, and sensed his brother tense beside him.

"Petrificus Totalus!" James roared. The girl stopped laughing and dodged the spell. Her wand suddenly appeared out of nowhere in her hand.

"Expelliarmus!" she shouted. The jet of red light struck James's hand, and his wand flew up in the air. The girl caught it expertly.

James grabbed Albus's wand from him and pointed it at the girl. "Expelliarmus!" he shouted. The red light struck the girl, but she retained her grip on both her own wand and James's. Albus recognized a pair of Shield Gloves on her hands, a serious product of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes that had been designed to protect the aurors during the war against Voldemort.

"Expelliarmus!" she shouted again, and Albus's wand flew from James to her as well.

Now clutching both of the Potter boys' wands as well as her own, the girl took aim at James. She laughed, a cold laugh that made Albus shudder. "Oh Jamie, you really are hopeless, aren't you?"

James glared at her, bracing himself. "Petrificus Totalus," said the girl. "Your idea." James's limbs snapped together and he started to fall backwards down the stairs. Albus quickly stepped behind his brother and held him up.

The girl slowly stepped down the stairs towards them. "How cute," she said, giving Albus a smile that looked almost genuine. "You have such a nice little brother, Jamie." She turned to Albus. "I highly doubt he would do the same for you."

She stopped two steps above the boys. "If you try to attack me again, Jamie, I'll kill you." Albus couldn't tell if she was joking or not. "But in the mean time..." She raised her wand, pointing it at James.

"Expelliarmus!" Professor Markan appeared out of nowhere, flinging off an invisibility cloak. The red light from his wand struck the girl, knocking all three wands away from her towards the professor.

"What is going on here?" the professor bellowed furiously. It seemed so uncanny, considering how old Markan looked, that his voice could sound so loud and full.

The girl glared at the professor defiantly. "Just a bit of fun, sir."

The Professor waved his wand at James, who regained control of his limbs. "So I see."

"I wasn't going to do any permanent damage," said the girl, sounding bizarrely innocent as she said this.

Markan raised an eyebrow, his voice returning to its normal, though still quite powerful, tone. "You threaten to kill him and then tell me you weren't going to do any permanent damage. Albeit I recognize that death isn't necessarily permanent, but that's not a sort of magic that we teach at this school."

The girl rolled her eyes. "That was a joke, sir." Albus was stunned by the cavalier attitude that she was taking with the professor.

"I'm sure it was, but then it could also have been a joke that you weren't going to do any permanent damage."

"Well," said the girl, making a show of thinking for a moment. "Perhaps to his ego, but nothing else."

For a moment the shadow of a smile flitted across Markan's face, but then the anger returned. "That's quite enough, Miss Black." He turned to James. "Mr. Potter, how long is your current detention sentence in the kitchens?"

James frowned. "Er... four more weeks, I think."

"Well, seeing as you did initiate the fight with Miss Black, I'm extending that sentence another month." James glared at the professor. The girl laughed.

"As for you, Miss Black..." The girl stopped laughing, but a smile remained on her face. "I'm proceeding with the notion that you did not in fact mean to cause Mr. Potter any serious or permanent harm and that this was all a bad practical joke. You will be joining Mr. Potter for the remainder of his detention in the kitchens."

The girl raised her eyebrows, and her mouth fell open a little. "Are you serious?"

"Would you rather I asked the Headmistress to expel you, Miss Black?"

"No."

"Then yes, I am serious. You two will spend every evening for the next eight weeks working together in the kitchens. I believe that will take us right up to the Christmas break. You two will not be permitted to do magic, and the house-elves will be keeping a close eye on you both. You will always be performing tasks together, never separately. And if either of you so much as lifts a finger to do the other harm, you'll learn just how powerful Elven magic is."

James and the girl both stared at the professor in shock. Albus felt uneasy in the midst of all the tension.

"Now, I advise all three of you to return to the Great Hall for the conclusion of the feast." With that, Professor Markan lay the three wands on the step at his feet, then swirled his invisibility cloak back around himself and disappeared. They heard footsteps progress down the stairs and out of the tower.

"Well, Jamie, see you in the kitchens," said the girl, stepping down to her wand and picking it up. It vanished not long after entering her hand. "By the way," she said, turning back and stepping up to Albus. "I'm Michaela." She held out her hand.

James immediately grabbed Albus's arm, preventing him from shaking Michaela's hand, not that Albus was inclined to. "I'm Albus," he simply said.

Michaela smirked at James and withdrew her hand. Then she stepped delicately down the stairs and out of sight.


	11. The New Season

**A/N: So I should warn you all, I'm a big sports fan, and quidditch is no exception. The eccentricity of the sport also provides opportunities for several distinct narratives, so of course I'm taking advantage. Each of the six quidditch matches will be in the story, along with certain patterns from Rowling's narratives that I really enjoyed, such as the uncooperative announcer.**

**I'm also trying yet another narrative style here, switching from perspective to perspective across a single scene, uninterrupted. I happen to think it worked out really well inside the stadium, so I'll probably stick with it for the other matches as well.**

**A bit of bad news, though: I'm taking my computer to the shop later today, and I don't know how long the procedure will take, so I may not be able to post again for a little while. To all who have stuck with the story through these early stages, my humblest apologies, and I'll compensate by posting multiple chapters the next time I can.**

**Now, without further ado, chapter 11:**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 11: The New Season**

With James's birthday during the first weekend of November came the onset of the quidditch season. Gryffindor's first match was, as always, against Slytherin, and the Gryffindor team was ready to win one for their birthday boy, as well as for the sake of their rivalry. Though for the past four years straight it had been Ravenclaw claiming both the Quidditch Cup and the House Cup in the end, Slytherin remained the hated rival in the Gryffindors' minds.

James was feeling pretty confident, though he knew that as seeker it was ultimately down to him to win the game for the team. Shane looked significantly more nervous, and James gave him a slap on the shoulder. "You'll do fine, mate."

Shane glanced at him.

"Just don't let them score 150 more points than us," James added. Shane's face fell and he glared at his friend, elbowing him hard. "Ow! Wait until after the game to hurt me."

"Alright, mates," said Nathan, clutching his broom tightly. "Another season, another chance to finally bring the Cup back to Gryffindor. I'm not going to say too much and stir your nerves so let's just go out there and do this."

The team cheered and departed the locker room. They knew that the Captain's real pep-talk would come at the end of the year, before the final match with Ravenclaw, which in recent memory was always the most important one. But for James and Shane, beating Slytherin was as important a first accomplishment as any.

As they took the field opposite the Slytherins, the roars from the stands steadily built. Typically the Hufflepuffs usually supported the Gryffindors in these matches, while the Ravenclaws were largely indifferent.

James paid little attention to the Slytherin squad opposite his team. He knew they were a mean-looking bunch, and didn't particularly care to see their faces.

As Professor Hawkeye threw up the quaffle and the players took to the air, the voice of Buck Munden, a Hufflepuff fifth-year, could be heard from the speakers. "And they're off! Up into the air flying high is Nathan Holdwin. He sure can fly, though of course not as well as Steven Smith can." A cheer went up from the Hufflepuffs. Steven Smith was the captain of the Hufflepuff team, also a chaser.

Then Professor Zarin could be heard through the microphone speaking sternly to Buck. "Mr. Munden, please keep your commentary limited to the teams currently playing."

"Very well. Sorry, Professor. Anyway, Holdwin takes the quaffle, flying towards the Slytherin keeper. Er... what's his name again?"

"Flint," said Professor Zarin harshly.

"Right, Flint. Holdwin flies at Flint. He's moving well, lots of twists, keeping the keeper on his toes, or rather on his broom, or... nevermind. And Holdwin shoots. AND HE SCORES! Ten points to Gryffindor." Loud roars went up from the Gryffindors and most of the Hufflepuffs. "Boy, what an impressive display. Though of course Steven Smith would have done it even better." The Hufflepuffs cheered loudly again.

"Mr. Munden."

"Sorry, Professor."

Flying high above the rest of the action, James looked around for the snitch. His eyes fell on the seeker across the field from him. He was surprised to find that the Slytherin seeker was a rather attractive girl. He recalled that in the past two years the Slytherin seeker had been some big ugly oaf of a guy. This girl was quite a change.

"And what's with Potter? Look at him stare at Warrington. Mate, you're supposed to be looking for the snitch, remember?"

There was loud laughter from the Slytherins. Sitting right in the aisle between the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws, between Marcus and Sarah, Michaela glared up at James.

James quickly shook himself and looked around. He could feel hundreds of eyes on him, jeering him for staring at the Slytherin. He chanced a glance back at the girl, who was smirking at him. Turning away from her, he doubled the vigilance of his search for the snitch, ignoring the game below.

"Here comes Barsk, zooming towards Thomas. He shoots. Thomas saves the shot!" The Gryffindors cheered again. "And Holdwin has the quaffle again..."

A chill wind blew across the stadium, a reminder to everyone that winter was coming on fast. High up on his broom, James shivered a little, but kept his balance.

Michaela felt a tap on her shoulder, and turned to see Sam Anderson, Sarah's older brother, standing behind her. "Hi."

"Hi," she replied. On the Ravenclaw side of her, Sarah turned and looked at her brother, surprised.

"Do you know everything that's going on?" Sam asked. "Need me to explain anything to you?"

"We have quidditch in the States," said Michaela.

"And Holdwin dodges a bludger. Oh but there's the other one. But Holdwin hangs on and keeps going."

"I know," said Sam, "but I know it's not as popular there."

"But I know the sport," said Michaela, making sure she sounded somewhat apologetic.

"And he shoots. And SCORES!" The Gryffindors roared. Michaela flinched from the noise and looked at her housemates in disgust, then gave a couple of claps for Holdwin.

"Besides," said Sarah, giving her brother a look, "I can explain anything to her that she doesn't know."

"Yeah," said Michaela, throwing an arm around her Ravenclaw friend.

"Er... right," said Sam, glancing between his sister and the pretty Gryffindor girl. "Alright then, enjoy the match." With that he turned and quickly returned to his seat.

Michaela and Sarah shared a glance. On Michaela's other side, Marcus turned and looked at the retreating Ravenclaw, then at his sister, then turned back to the game, smirking.

High above, James was also smirking at the retreating Ravenclaw.

"And here comes Barsk again. And he finally gets one past Thomas." The Slytherins cheered. "20-10, still in favor of Gryffindor."

This goal seemed to initiate a turning point in the match, as Shane became less sure of himself after the first goal was scored on him. Slytherin scored three more times.

The Slytherin beaters were vicious, taking off after the bludgers as though they were seekers after the snitch, and shoving the Gryffindor beaters away. The chasers did a good job of dodging on both sides though.

Slytherin continued to build up a lead, as Flint had much more experience guarding the posts than Shane did.

James looked around frantically for the snitch, until his gaze once again got caught on the aisle between the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws, where another Ravenclaw boy was trying and failing to talk to Michaela.

"Holdwin scores! 80-40 in favor of Slytherin. Oh but there goes Warrington!"

James spun around in the air, searching the skies for the pretty Slytherin. He spotted her diving down towards the center of the field. There he saw it, a glint of gold hovering right in the middle of the fray.

"Oh and Warrington takes a bludger! But that didn't even slow her down, she just keeps on going."

James shot down towards the mess of red and green blurs. The girl was nearly at the snitch, but just as she got too close it shot off, speeding down towards the ground. James zoomed right through the middle of the fray in pursuit. He felt a bludger glance off his back, and winced at the pain, but kept going.

She was a fair distance ahead of him, until suddenly the snitch changed direction, flying up and over her head. James pulled up quickly, trying to intercept it, but couldn't get that high fast enough.

Next thing he knew, he and the girl were side by side. The notion of how close she was to him seemed to blur his focus, but he struggled to stay concentrated on the snitch. The snitch took a turn towards her side, and he turned slightly, bumping into her. For several seconds they flew as one, each pushing against the other.

By now all eyes in the stadium were on them, the rest of the game forgotten. He could feel her pushing hard against him, and he pushed back with just as much force.

Finally the snitch took a turn in his direction, and he reacted quickly, turning and separating himself from the girl. He sped towards the snitch and finally caught up to it, stopping its flight.

"Potter's got the snitch! Gryffindor wins!"

James threw his hand up, then turned and gave the girl an apologetic smile, but she was already flying back towards the ground.

Down in the stands with the other first-years, Albus applauded loudly, proud of his older brother. Beside him, Rose had a huge smile on her face as she watched her cousin. Beside her, Allison was jumping up and down as she cheered for Gryffindor. Beside her, Leanna was looking at her strangely.

A fourth-year behind Albus slapped him on the shoulder. "Heck of a brother you've got there." Albus smiled at him, wondering when people were going to be applauding for him.

Inside the Slytherin locker room, Warrington was the first of her team to reach the bench. She immediately stored her broom and began changing robes.

"Warrington!" Flint bellowed, storming into the locker room after her. "What the hell was that?"

She shot him a glare, knowing better than to make excuses.

"You had a huge lead on him!" he continued furiously.

She ignored him.

He stormed right up to her and grabbed her arm. "Listen, Warrington," He snarled, "you're on this team for one reason: to catch the snitch. If you can't do that, I'll be more than happy to kick you off."

"I can beat the other two," she said. "Easily." She always tried to reduce her accent as much as possible around the other Slytherins, especially when they were angry.

"But not Potter?" He looked almost more furious at this, if that was at all possible.

"I'll beat the other two," she repeated, not a trace of uncertainty in her voice.

"I hope you will, Spaniard." With that he turned and stalked off to change.

As she left the locker room, the students were filing out of the stands. The Slytherins were walking with their heads down, looking angry. As she joined them, many of them glared at her.

A first-year ran and caught up with her. "Good game," he said.

She glanced down at the little blonde boy in surprise. "Em... thank you."

"You're welcome," he said, then glanced around as if not knowing what to say next.

"What's your name?" she asked.

"Scorpius."

"Scorpius?"

"Malfoy."

"I'm Carla. Warrington. Nice to meet you."

"You too."

Together they walked into the castle and down to the dungeons, ignoring the glares of the other Slytherins.

Elsewhere, Albus ran to catch up to his brother and Shane as they walked triumphantly back to the castle. "Good game, James."

"Thanks."

Shane glanced at Albus expectantly.

"You too, Shane."

Shane laughed. "Thanks, little Potter. So how's that for a birthday present, James?"

"You mean one that I got for myself?" said James with a laugh. "Quite nice."

Shane frowned, but there was no arguing with that. At least he hadn't let the Slytherins score 150 points. "I wasn't expecting our first match to be that short," he said.

"Ha, well then next time I'll let it go on a little longer."

"Don't think that Slytherin seeker would have let you do that, mate. You barely beat her."

"Yeah," said James, remembering the girl. "Who is she?"

"Carla Warrington. She's in our year."

"Is she?" James didn't recall seeing her before.

"Bit of an outcast in Slytherin, from what I've heard. They call her the Spaniard."

"Is she from Spain?"

Shane laughed. "Well gee mate, can't imagine how you managed to figure that one out."

Albus watched his brother's face as he wondered about the girl. Was James interested in her? In a Slytherin?

"I know the name Warrington," James said after a moment. "There was a Death Eater named Warrington, wasn't there?"

Shane shrugged. "That's your area of expertise, not mine."

"Well, my father's," James muttered. He glanced at Albus briefly. "But being an outcast in Slytherin is a good thing, I would think. It means you're not quite as bad as the rest."

Shane laughed. "If you say so, mate."

They returned to the common room, where the Gryffindors proceeded to celebrate their first victory of the quidditch season, as well as the birthday of their seeker.

Even Michaela joined in the celebration, though it was more for the feel-good atmosphere than out of any actual thrill for the team. As for the birthday boy? Well, her birthday present to him was that she wouldn't antagonize him for a day, even when they had to go to the kitchens that night. She would let him celebrate. It was the least she could do... but the most as well.

* * *

><p>November wore on, and the days grew progressively colder. Finally the first snowfall came in the middle of the month. Marcus was en route to the library, seeing as he was never going to get his potions essay done in the common room with the painfully talkative Laura Corner and her yappy friends there. He couldn't understand how the other Gryffindors were able to ignore her so easily. Or was he the only one that was able to hear her voice from clear across the room?<p>

Near the entrance hall he spotted the Headmistress welcoming a guest to the castle. "Mrs. Weasley, welcome back."

"Thank you, Professor. Or Headmistress, rather."

McGonagall chuckled. "Either is fine. Or just call me Minerva."

This visitor was a very attractive woman, with curly brown hair and soft features. Her intelligence was evident in her look, in her sharp gaze and knowing smile. She wore a long, brown Muggle coat, which looked rather out of place in the school.

He had heard of at least four Weasleys in Gryffindor: the Head Girl, Victoire, whom he had had the displeasure of meeting once when he had been trying to help his sister with a prank on James Potter, a pair of cousins in fifth year named Dominique and Molly who had entertained him once with a comical prank of their own, and a little first-year girl named Rose. He wondered which of them this Mrs. Weasley was the mother of.

Marcus kept walking, on towards the library. When he got there he was surprised to see only one other student, an awkward-looking fellow sitting in the far corner with large glasses and too much dirt-brown hair piled messily on top of his head, sticking up on either side like a pair of horns. All-in-all he looked rather like an owl. He was wearing Hufflepuff robes, and Marcus thought he recognized him from one of the classes that the Gryffindors shared with the Hufflepuffs in third year.

The boy didn't look up as he entered the library. Madam Pince was nowhere to be seen. Marcus sat down at one of the tables and unrolled his parchment, staring at the space that his essay would, hopefully, soon fill.

The library doors opened again, and the visitor, Mrs. Weasley, entered. She glanced at the two boys sitting in the room, frowning slightly. At this point the other boy finally lifted his head from his book, looking up at her as she made her way over to the bookshelves. After a moment she disappeared from Marcus's view.

The other boy kept watching, the slow movement of his head an indication to Marcus of where she was at each moment. Then she was in his line of sight again.

He was getting a strange feeling, somewhere in the back of his mind. He had no idea why, but something about this was unsettling him. He didn't know if it was more from the visitor or from the other boy.

Marcus watched as Mrs. Weasley paced up and down amidst the bookshelves, wondering what she was looking for. Every once in a while she would glance uneasily around her, her eyes lingering for a moment each on Marcus, which made him feel uneasy, and on the boy in the far corner. Marcus shifted his attention to the boy. He was watching Mrs. Weasley intently, with a look that made Marcus feel even more uneasy.

Madam Pince appeared, shuffling up to Mrs. Weasley excitedly. "Anything I can help you with, Hermione?"

Mrs. Weasley turned and spoke to the librarian in a low voice. Marcus could have sworn he heard her mention his own last name. But that wasn't too strange, considering what a commonplace term it was. He shrugged it off, despite the feeling that he was getting each time she glanced at him.

Finally she pulled out a couple of books and checked them out with Madam Pince. When she left the library Marcus felt some of the bad feeling dissipate.

He glanced at the other boy, who had gone back to reading. Then, in a sudden impulse he rolled up his parchment and got up, approaching the boy. "Hi."

The boy didn't look up, or give any indication that he had heard Marcus.

"Hi," Marcus repeated, somewhat more loudly. This earned him a sharp look from Madam Pince, who was now back at her desk.

The boy looked up at him questioningly.

Marcus gestured to the seat beside the boy. "Can I sit here?"

The boy frowned behind the large glasses. "W-Why?"

The stutter caught Marcus off-guard. "Why not? It's a little lonely in here, isn't it?"

The boy shook his head, but after a moment his shoulders seemed to slump a little. "You c-can sit."

Marcus sat down. The boy went back to reading. "What's your name?"

The boy frowned again, but didn't look up from the book. "W-Why?"

Marcus shrugged. "Just curious."

The boy looked up at him. "M-My name's Gary Boulder, though I d-don't know why you're curious."

Marcus raised his eyebrows. "Well, why wouldn't I be? I'm new to this school, though I'm a third-year. Haven't met that many people yet."

"Y-You're one of the B-Black t-twins."

"Yes," replied Marcus, even more surprised. "How did you know?"

"Y-Your sister caught me with a p-prank."

"Really? It must have been meant for Potter."

The boy nodded. "He d-dodged it."

"Ah. I see. Well, sorry about that."

"It's f-fine."

"Well, I'm Marcus. Pleased to meet you, Gary."

The boy simply nodded, looking back at his book.

Marcus glanced at his rolled parchment uneasily, wanting something else to say. Finally he caved and unrolled the parchment, staring at the blank space once more.

The boy looked up again. "The p-potions essay?"

"Yeah," said Marcus dully.

There was a moment of pensive silence. Then the boy spoke in a voice that was rather quiet, even for him. "I can help you."

"Really?"

Gary nodded, setting aside his book and leaning towards the essay. Marcus saw that the book was _Quidditch Through the Ages_.

Gary saw Marcus looking at the book. "Are you g-going to the game on S-Saturday?"

"Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff? Yeah, I suppose I'll go."

"I'm k-keeper for Hufflepuff."

"Really?" This boy hadn't struck him as the athletic type.

Gary nodded.

"I'll be cheering for you," said Marcus.

At this Gary finally cracked a smile.


	12. Dodging the Mistletoe

**A/N: Hey all! I'm back in action for a couple days. Here's the first of 3 or 4 chapters that will be posted before Monday night, when I will probably be falling out of contact for a few more days. Sorry, but after that I'll post a few more quickly again.**

**Another quidditch match here, with a similar narrative style, but not quite so many changes. Then we finally get a decent look inside Michaela's head, before returning to the mind of a fourteen-year-old boy in his cheesiest (and most vulnerable) of moments. Whether it comes across well or not, I can definitely say this was a fun chapter to write. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 12: Dodging the Mistletoe**

It was exactly two weeks after the first match that Albus and Rose made their way down to the quidditch pitch once more for the second one. They weren't quite so interested in who won between these two houses, but the match would be fun to watch. They had heard that Ravenclaw was heavily favored to win, so Albus figured he ought to cheer for Hufflepuff, the underdogs.

He found James and his friends in the stands, and sat near his brother, figuring he would have a better understanding and commentary than the obviously biased Hufflepuff announcer. As the teams took the field, Albus saw that James was apprehensively scanning the Ravenclaw squad.

"And out they come. Wow, look at those Hufflepuffs. They sure look ready to play. And win. And I'm sure they will."

Albus suppressed a groan. It was going to be quite difficult to listen to Munden through this match.

The Hufflepuffs were not looking nearly as confident as the Ravenclaws. They seemed like a much more motley crew. Only the captain, standing in the center, looked like a true athlete. Albus thought the keeper looked rather like an owl, with a pair of large glasses on his face and a lot of hair on his head sticking up on the sides.

The Ravenclaws were a decidedly sharper-looking bunch. Albus spotted Sean's older brother standing in the center. The two captains shook hands much more firmly than Holdwin and Flint had in the first match.

Then the match began. A Ravenclaw chaser took the quaffle and scored in less than fifteen seconds.

"There's got to be some penalty there!" Munden protested. "Come on, Professor."

Hufflepuff got the quaffle back. "And there goes Smith! O boy he can fly! Look at him—Ouch! That's a foul!" But Professor Hawkeye ignored the claim, for no actual foul had been committed. Ravenclaw stole the quaffle back and scored again.

"Damn," Albus heard Shane mutter.

Within five minutes the Ravenclaws had scored three more goals. Shane was panicking. "I can't block those shots!"

"You can do better than owl-boy up there," said James, not that this was very reassuring, since 'owl-boy' seemed to be having a fair amount of trouble.

"Maybe," replied Shane.

"And Billet of Ravenclaw has the quaffle again. Stop him Steve, stop him! And... hey, what's that seeker doing?"

The Ravenclaw seeker was flying in close to the fray.

"Sandra!" yelled Munden. "Sandra, do you see it?" The Hufflepuff seeker was looking around frantically, but didn't see anything. The Ravenclaw seeker kept going. Albus looked ahead of him, but didn't see the snitch anywhere.

Then the Ravenclaw seeker paused, looking around himself as though confused. A bludger struck him, and he immediately retreated back above the match.

From her place between the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws, Michaela looked on in confusion. "What's going on?" she asked Sarah. Sarah simply grimaced.

"Well, I don't know what that was about. But Steven Smith has the quaffle! There he goes! He's got Anderson off-guard! HE SCORES!"

Sam Anderson was looking up at his seeker uneasily, not caring that the quaffle had gone past him. The silence on the Hufflepuff side was finally broken, as the cheers erupted.

Ravenclaw regrouped quickly and scored again, and then two more times after that. Anderson let a couple more shots go by him, still glancing up at the seeker periodically. But nevertheless the Ravenclaws steadily built up their lead.

The match went on and on, and the seekers kept looking around fruitlessly. Ravenclaw scored again and again, and with each superb shot Shane gave a little flinch.

"Well," said a rather listless-sounding Munden after more than an hour and a half of play. "It's 210-70 in favor of Ravenclaw. Come on Sandra, find that snitch."

Albus was feeling tremendously restless by now. He looked desperately up at the seekers. Finally the Hufflepuff seeker gave a sudden little movement, looking almost as though she were staring straight at him. Albus looked up to see the snitch hovering directly above his head. The seeker began shooting towards him.

Anderson saw her go and looked up at his own seeker, who was looking the other way. "Turpin!" he yelled. He quickly turned and blocked a shot by Smith, passing the quaffle to Billet. "Turpin, get going!" The seeker looked down at him in confusion, and he pointed in the direction of the Hufflepuff seeker.

Billet scored again, but Munden barely took notice. "220-70. Go! Sandra! Go!"

"One more goal," muttered Anderson, knowing that his new seeker didn't have a chance of catching the Hufflepuff girl.

The snitch took off from above Albus, and Sandra gave chase. Turpin trailed behind, watching cautiously.

"Go Billet!" Anderson roared. His star chaser zoomed as fast as he could towards the Hufflepuff goal. The owl-boy watched him warily. When Billet decided he was close enough he fired. The owl-boy swung around on his broom, deflecting the shot with the back of it, flinching at the moment of contact.

"What a save by Boulder! Come on, Sandra!"

Sandra raced as fast as she could, slowly closing in on the snitch. James was feeling pretty confident that he could beat her. On the far side of the stands, so was Carla.

The Ravenclaw chasers regained the quaffle. Billet received it once more, and took off towards the owl-boy.

Sandra was close. So close.

Billet fired again, this time aiming for the farthest hoop. The owl-boy dove after the shot, but couldn't reach it. "230-70. No! Sandra! No!"

But Sandra caught the snitch a moment later. The Ravenclaws roared, and she looked around in confusion, wondering why the opposing team was cheering when she had caught the snitch.

James shook his head sadly. That kind of thing should never happen to a seeker.

Anderson let out a whoop, throwing his hands in the air. That wasn't how he had expected to win, but it was just as well. Now he just needed to find a new seeker, someone who could compete with James Potter and Carla Warrington. He had a feeling he knew who it should be.

Gary sat down in the Hufflepuff locker room, feeling absolutely distressed. Smith approached him, looking less than happy. "Well gee, mate, let a few more go in next time, why don't you."

"Steven!" Sandra snapped. "It was his first match. And against the Ravenclaws. Those chasers are looking as good as ever."

Steven frowned at her, then at Gary. "Still. Twenty-three goals?"

Gary practically withered under the captain's stern gaze.

"Let him be, Steven," said Sandra softly. "It's my fault for not catching the snitch fast enough."

Steven gave a grunt of frustration, but stalked away. Sandra sat down next to Gary. "Don't worry about him. We lose to Ravenclaw every year, one way or another. It gets to all of us at some point."

"I-I'll be b-better next time. M-Much better. I p-promise."

Sandra smiled at him. "See that you are. Before Steven gives himself a heart attack."

* * *

><p>December was inaugurated by a massive snow storm, and that was a good indicator of what the weather would be like for the weeks to come. People were turning their attention to the approaching holidays. Marcus and Michaela were not looking forward to the holidays, however. Their family had changed since moving to Britain. Their mother wasn't as happy, and their father had devoted himself much more to his business, which was the reason they had moved here in the first place. They had come to view Hogwarts as a haven from all that, and did not want to leave this haven and return home, even just to spend the holidays with them.<p>

"So what do you want to do the night of our birthday?" Marcus asked her. It was the week before Christmas.

"I'll be spending that evening with Potter in the kitchens, remember?"

"Oh, right."

The good news was that Michaela and James hadn't killed each other yet, nor had they antagonized each other in the kitchens enough that the elves had had to intervene... yet.

But on said special night as she walked down to the kitchens, Michaela was feeling especially frustrated. This was not how she had intended to spend the evening of her fourteenth birthday. Granted, James had gotten stuck in the same situation on his, but at least he had gotten to spend the day winning his first quidditch match and then celebrating, rather than sitting in classes.

Well, tonight she would even it out. Tonight she would enjoy herself, and he would suffer the consequences.

He met her outside the fruit painting. "Hey, Jamie."

"Hey," he said softly, having accepted the nickname by now. "Happy birthday."

This surprised her. "Thank you." She struggled to maintain her resolve to antagonize him tonight.

He tickled the pear in the painting, and the door to the kitchens swung open. The kitchens were a massive room, directly beneath the Great Hall, with five large tables matching the ones above. House-elves were scurrying here and there, barely acknowledging them as they entered.

Movement up near the ceiling immediately caught Michaela's eye. Was that... mistletoe?

She froze. A sprig of mistletoe was wandering around the room up near the ceiling. What was it doing in here?

She swore silently. Change of plans. She wasn't going to go near Potter tonight, unless the sprig was on the far side of the room.

She heard his breath catch, and knew he had spotted the mistletoe as well. She watched as he stared at it for a long moment. Then he cast a sideways glance at her, looking uncomfortable.

Good, at least he wasn't looking to get caught under it with her.

They walked up opposite sides of the "Hufflepuff" table to the back of the room, where most of the house-elves were gathered around food at various stages of preparation. Vials of dragon dust sat on a small table off to the side. One of the house-elves levitated a pair of trays over to them, and they set to work, taking the trays of prepared food over to their places on the five large tables, where they would wait until the morning, when they would be magically transported to the same spots in the Great Hall above.

They each kept an eye on the wandering mistletoe, keeping on opposite sides of a table each time they carried a tray. Occasionally one of the house-elves would frown at them for hesitating. They were supposed to be working together, after all, not separately.

She chanced a glance at him. He was looking quite uncomfortable. "Never been caught under the mistletoe, Jamie?" she asked softly as they walked up opposite sides of the "Gryffindor" table.

The discomfort in his expression increased.

There was something that struck her as odd. He seemed just a bit too discomforted. "When was the last time you kissed a girl, Jamie?"

At this he positively blanched. They reached the far end of the table, and she stepped up to him. On the floor above in the morning, they would have been standing in front of all their housemates.

"You've never kissed a girl, Jamie?"

He didn't answer. As one they looked up. The mistletoe hovered above them, waiting, refusing to continue its patternless venture across the ceiling until after its traditional requirement had been fulfilled.

He looked back down at her, infinitely nervous. She met his gaze, keeping herself calm and collected, stepping right up to him and slowly bringing her face closer to his. When he realized what she was doing, his eyes widened. She continued, bringing them closer and closer. Finally he finished the process, bringing his lips down to hers.

The kiss was extremely tentative. Their lips hovered together, barely touching. She gently rubbed, slowly pressing harder. He had, it seemed, frozen again. Finally she pressed her lips fully against his, held there for a second, then pulled away.

He was staring at her in shock. She met his gaze, fighting the chills that raced across her skin as she separated from him. His pale-brown eyes looked dark, almost as dark as her own. His breath was slow and heavy, as was hers.

She stepped away from him, walking back along the table. He finally snapped out of the trance, turning and walking back up the other side.

They walked. Neither one said anything. He couldn't believe what had just happened. He watched her out of the corner of his eye. She was holding her head high, with that same confident look that he had learned to hate.

"You've done that before," he blurted.

She nodded, a barely visible motion as she maintained her stride. "Just once."

"Who?"

She paused, turning to him with an eyebrow raised. Her expression looked nothing like it had before she started this walk. "It would just be a name to you, Jamie."

He hadn't meant to blurt out the question like that. He didn't even really want to know. "You're right. Never mind."

They continued walking. As they walked the tension changed, and he felt strangely comfortable, able to ask her about anything that didn't have to do with the kiss.

Several questions immediately flooded into his mind.

"Why do you have so many of my uncle's products?"

She paused once more, turning to him with that same look. "Your uncle?"

"Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes."

Her eyebrows shot up, and a long second passed before she responded. "George Weasley is your uncle?"

"Yes."

She said nothing. After a moment she turned and started walking again.

"You know him?"

"No."

He watched her for a moment, then started walking again.

They continued to work. Though they mostly still kept on opposite sides of the tables, they were more cooperative now, helping each other and getting everything done faster than usual.

Finally they stood at the front of the room in front of the entrance, looking along five tables full of food.

"Another night down," said James.

"Yep," said Michaela, turning towards the door.

He grabbed her arm, and she looked at him quizzically. He was looking upwards. She followed his gaze. The mistletoe was hovering above them once more.

They looked at each other simultaneously. "Really, Jamie?"

He shrugged, smiling sheepishly. Then he leaned down. She met him halfway.

Their lips pressed together fully immediately this time, staying that way for a second. Then she pulled away and gave him a small smile. "Bye," she said, leaving the kitchen.

He watched as she disappeared, the door shutting behind her.

He didn't remember the walk back up to Gryffindor Tower. He didn't remember passing through the common room, patting his brother on the shoulder as he made his way up to the dormitories. He didn't remember responding almost incoherently to Shane's "What's up?" Nor did he remember smiling at Marcus just before plopping down onto his bed and staring up at the ceiling for several minutes. He didn't remember falling asleep with the curtains open and his robes on, his friends watching him with concern.

What he did remember was a dream.

He was older, well past his Hogwarts years. He was sitting on a red couch, in a cozy-looking living room with a large fireplace. In the corner of the room a pair of young children played. The dark-haired boy looked to be about five, while the little red-haired girl that sat opposite him couldn't have been more than three years old.

As he watched them play he felt a sense of elation rise within himself. When the door to the room opened, the elation bubbled up so much that it threatened to burst out of him in waves.

There she stood. Once his worst enemy, she now smiled lovingly at him. She quickly walked over to him and sat down beside him. As he leaned towards her she met him halfway.

"James?" Shane tried to shake him. "James, you okay mate?"

James's eyes sprang open, and he looked around in confusion. When his eyes found Shane, he frowned.

"You okay?" Shane repeated. His face was illuminated by the morning light coming in through the window.

James stared at his friend in silence, wishing more than anything to return to that dream. He was terrified of going down to the common room or to the Great Hall and seeing how she would greet him. Would she go on spiting him? Or would things change?

Shane waited above him, a look of bewilderment on his face. Finally, reluctantly, James got up. He was surprised to find himself still in his robes, but this was just as well, since it was one less task to have to deal with before seeing her again. Quickly performing a daily odor-repressing charm on himself, he led the way out of the dormitory, his friends still watching him in confusion even as they followed.

She wasn't in the common room. He quickly made his way down to the Great Hall. When he entered he made no move towards the Gryffindor table. Rather, he simply stood in the entrance, as other students passed around him, looking at him strangely.

He scanned the Ravenclaw table, and quickly found her, sitting as always with Sarah Anderson, along with Marcus and a hairy-looking Hufflepuff boy. He stared at her, silently wishing she would look at him. Finally she did, and their eyes met briefly. There was no change in her expression, nothing that indicated to him if things would change. But as she turned back to Sarah he thought he saw a small smile appear on her face just before it disappeared from his view.

Or that could have just been wishful thinking.


	13. Christmas at the Cottage

**A/N: So I decided to have Bill and Fleur keep Shell Cottage, rather than have it just be a temporary hideout, since it's a great location for a family-oriented holiday chapter. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I own pretty much nothing in this chapter, since the location and characters of the family are all from Rowling's universe. Only the plot is mine.**

**Chapter 13: Christmas at the Cottage**

When Albus and James met their family on platform 9 3/4 for the second time, Ginny embraced each of her sons tightly. She was clearly in a very pleasant mood, eager to see her family at Shell Cottage. Though she saw her parents and each of her brothers fairly often, except for George, it was only every once in a while that all the Weasleys gathered together.

This time Harry hadn't brought his car. The family left the station and followed a number of other wizards and witches in Muggle coats into a nearby store which was run by a wizard. The wizard saw them come in and opened a door to a back room, making sure that none of the Muggle customers in the store took too much interest in the new, apparently popular section of the store. After entering the room and disappearing from view the wizards apparated away to their destinations.

Albus and James each grabbed their father's arm, and felt the familiar unpleasant sensation of being sucked through a tight tube. Then they stood before the cottage, and their mother appeared behind them with Lily.

It was somewhat colder here than it had been in London. The large, brown cottage sat upon a high, snow-covered bank overlooking the sea, sloping down on either side of the cottage to a small, icy beach. A chill wind blew inland, and Albus shivered, clutching his coat tighter around him.

Ginny knocked twice on the door. After several seconds it opened, and an older version of Victoire stood there. Her beautiful silvery hair reflected the silver winter outside, and she looked at once both enchantingly beautiful and calmingly motherly. She gave the Potter family a wide smile. "Ginny! It is so good to see you!"

"You too, Fleur," Ginny replied with a genuine smile. Ginny's relationship with her sister-in-law had steadily improved since the war. Harry recalled with a chuckle how Ginny had once referred to Fleur as a cow. But after the wedding Fleur had proven herself to be a good Weasley woman, much more humble than she had appeared to be in her youth.

"And Harry, how are you?" Harry couldn't remember when Fleur had started adding the 'H' to his name. She had used to call him "'Arry," with her French accent, but had eventually finally managed to pronounce his name correctly, along with all the other names of her relatives.

"I'm well Fleur, thanks. And you?" They had once been rivals in the Triwizard Tournament, but in the process he had saved the life of her sister, Gabrielle. After that she had become perhaps one of his most loyal supporters during the war, and a good friend afterwards.

"Well, come in." Fleur stepped aside and greeted her nephews and niece as they entered. The cottage looked similar now to how it had looked during the war, when it had served as a hideout for the Order of the Phoenix. Harry, Ron and Hermione had stayed here after escaping capture at Malfoy Manor. There was now more decoration inside. New family pictures had been put up, featuring Bill and Fleur and their children, and the rooms were in general more colorful.

Fleur left the door open, knowing that the other Weasleys would soon be arriving from the station with their own children. She placed a heating charm over the threshold, and no sooner had she done that than her own children appeared, Victoire apparating with each of her siblings holding on to an arm.

"Victoire!" Fleur ran over and hugged her elder daughter, followed by her other children. "Comment vas-tu?"

"Tres bien, merci," Victoire replied in beautiful French.

Inside the cottage, the Potter family moved into the large sitting room. "Ginny!" The elder Molly Weasley stood up from her chair, hurrying over and wrapping her daughter in a tight hug. She was just as large as always. Her red hair had lost a fair amount of color, now appearing about a fifty-fifty combination of red and gray. Beside her, Arthur Weasley stood up as well. His hair was almost completely gray. He was tall and gaunt, with scars from having been attacked by a large serpent during the war.

After Ginny, Molly moved on to her grandchildren, wrapping them each in a suffocating hug, followed by Harry. Arthur followed her along the line of Potters, shaking hands with his son-in-law.

Bill Weasley appeared from the next room. He had many more scars than Arthur did, and his face had a somewhat wolfish look to it. He had been bitten by a werewolf during the war, but hadn't been turned into a werewolf himself.

Soon all of the Weasleys were present, except for George and his family. Charlie, who had never married, Percy, Ron and Ginny sat around their parents, while Harry and Hermione sat off to the side with Percy's wife, Audrey. The children had run off to somewhere else in the house, under the watchful eyes of Victoire.

When Bill came in to the room from the kitchen, where he had been helping his wife, Molly asked him for the third time. "When did you say George's plane would get in, dear?"

"Any minute now, Mum," Bill replied.

No sooner had he said this than there was a loud knock on the door. Fleur went to answer it. "George! How good to see you!"

The first thing they saw was the gold ear. George had lost his right ear during the war, and had had it replaced with a fitted gold replica. Engraved in the gold, just beneath the ear, was the letter 'F.'

George smiled at his family, but beneath the smile Harry could see the faintest trace of bitterness. After the war, George's personality had darkened considerably. Though he had continued and expanded his joke business, outside of work his sense of humor had soured somewhat. He was quiet and moody, and had both a love and a hatred for mirrors, which showed him not only himself, but his twin brother as well.

"George!" said Ron fondly. "How are you? How are things in America?"

Molly tended to mutter about George to the rest of the family, about how he had seized the first opportunity to leave Britain, where it had all happened. It certainly seemed true enough. As soon as he managed to open a shop overseas, in New York, he took his family and left, just before his eldest child, Roxanne, now sixteen, had been due to start Hogwarts. They had now been living in the United States for over five years, only returning to Britain for family gatherings such as Christmas.

"Very well, Ron, as always. Business continues to grow. How is everybody?"

Roxanne entered the room behind her father. She had dark hair and a dark face, like her mother, Angelina. Her dark eyes seemed to pierce everyone around her, intently gazing through their faces into their very souls. Her expression was at once both warm and familiar and cold and analytical.

"Angelina with her family?"

George nodded. "Fred as well. They're spending the week at her brother's place." George had named his second child, his son, after his lost twin.

The other Weasleys glanced at each other, as though looking for something new to say.

"Where are the kids?" George asked.

"In the other room," said Molly. She looked at Roxanne. "I'm sure your cousins are waiting for you, my dear."

Roxanne glanced at her grandmother with that same intent, analytical gaze, barely smiling.

Just then Dominique and the younger Molly Weasley entered the room. They halted when they saw Roxanne. Roxanne turned and met each of their gazes.

"Hi!" said the younger Molly brightly, waving. Roxanne waved back, once again barely smiling.

Dominique nodded at the other dark-haired girl, who nodded back.

"Ah, Roxanne, how are you?" said Victoire, coming into the room behind the yin-yang. The other cousins followed. Lily and Hugo came bouncing in, along with Lucy, Percy's younger daughter. Rose entered, and Albus made to follow her, watching uncertainly as James seemed to hang back in the hallway, staring at George.

"Well hello there," said George to his nieces and nephews. "How are you all?" His gaze trailed over each one of them until it fell on James, meeting the stern-looking stare with confusion.

It wasn't until George was no longer the center of attention that James approached him, asking to speak with him outside. Albus followed his brother, and James seemed not to notice him.

Once they were alone James pulled something out of his pocket and held it up. "What is this?" Albus stared in confusion at the small black box with three gold Ws on it, just like the band on the step the night that third-year girl attacked them.

George's eyes widened as soon as he saw the box, and he simply stared at it for several seconds. "Where did you get that?" he asked finally.

"That doesn't matter," James replied sternly. He studied his uncle for a moment. "This is your product."

George grimaced, bringing a hand up to scratch a non-existent ear. "Yeah."

Uncle and nephew stared at each other for several moments. "What were you thinking?" James asked finally.

"Better just to think that I wasn't," answered George. "But we had all of those products recalled within two weeks. And those were years ago. Where did you get that?"

James hesitated for the first time. "A student at school had it."

George said nothing, watching him. Then he simply nodded. "Okay."

James hesitated for a moment longer, then made to head back inside.

"James."

James stopped moving and turned back to his uncle.

"I'm going to be back in the country in May, on business. During that trip I'll stop at Hogwarts. I would like to speak with the student who has these... products."

James nodded, then went back inside. George glanced at Albus. He had a strange look on his face, the kind of look that Albus recalled his father getting whenever the legacy of an old enemy resurfaced.

Albus watched as George simply stared at him, unseeingly. He fought to restrain a reflexive shudder under his uncle's trance-like gaze.

"Dad?" Roxanne had appeared in the doorway, unnoticed by either George or Albus. "Are you alright?"

George snapped out of the trance, looking at his daughter. "Yeah. I'm fine."

Roxanne glanced between her father and Albus, her expression a mix of concern and curiosity. "Okay. Why don't you come back inside?"

George nodded, taking his daughter's hand and allowing her to lead him back into the room.

Albus followed after a moment. This encounter between his brother and his uncle was undoubtably the strangest he had ever witnessed between any two of his relatives.

* * *

><p>The night of Christmas Eve, Albus lay awake in bed, staring at the Muggle watch that his father had given him for Christmas years ago. It was not nearly as old as the one that his father wore around, which had belonged to his grandmother's brother, but it had still been not quite new when Albus had received it, though he had never learned where it had come from.<p>

It was almost midnight. It was almost Christmas. He was excited. He always got excited about Christmas, though he couldn't quite understand why. He was past the age already where the magic that the Muggles associated with the holiday held any enchantment for him. But still the holiday excited him.

In the other bed in the room, James snored loudly. Albus tried to ignore the noise. The watch edged closer and closer to midnight.

Then midnight struck. And with it came a loud boom that shook the house. James was out of bed in a flash, wand in hand. Albus leaped up and ran for the door, drawing his own wand.

All of the Weasleys were out in the hall, wands lit. Albus heard his sister yell for their father. More sounds were heard, coming from the living room.

Harry and Bill led the way down the stairs, Ginny and Victoire close behind them. "Who iz in my house?" called Fleur angrily. The sounds ceased. Then Harry and Bill sprang into the room, aiming their wands at the intruder.

A massive man in a red suit crouched behind the overly large Christmas tree. He had a large, fluffy white beard, and his plump face was covered in wrinkles.

The man stepped from behind the tree only when he was sure that Harry and Bill were too confused to fire. "Ho ho ho!"

"It can't be," muttered James from beside Albus. Albus of course knew who this man was, or rather was supposed to be. That was a Muggle myth that wizards loved to take advantage of. Yet this seemed simply too real.

"Merry Christmas," said the man. His gaze focused on Victoire, and suddenly he began to change. The beard shrank and disappeared. The white hair turned green. The wrinkles on the face disappeared, and the man shrank to about a quarter of the size he had been around the waste.

Victoire's expression changed in an instant. "Teddy!" She leaped into her boyfriend's arms, hugging him tightly.

Harry lowered his wand, chuckling. He watched as the family welcomed the son of Remus Lupin and the metamorphmagus Nymphadora Tonks.

Finally Teddy turned his gaze to the elder James Potter's son, his godfather. "Prongs."

Harry nodded. "Moony." Teddy was an understudy in the Auror Department, and Harry frequently took him with him on missions, though he generally kept him well out the way of any serious danger, when there was any. The aurors had no doubt that with time and practice the young metamorphmagus would prove to be an invaluable ally.

Teddy aimed his wand at himself, and the massive red suit that was now hanging on his shoulders shrank to fit him well. Victoire embraced him tightly once more, resting her head on his shoulder. But then she felt Teddy tense, and lifted her head up to follow his gaze to where her father still had his wand pointed at him.

"Daddy! Lower your wand."

Bill frowned at the young man, glancing only briefly at his daughter.

"Oh Bill, put eet down," said Fleur, stepping forward and putting her hand over her husband's. "Welcome, Teddy."

"Thanks, Fleur," Teddy replied, still glancing at Bill warily.

"Well, now that you've surprised us all, we should all be getting back to bed," said the elder Molly Weasley sleepily.

"Why?" yelled Lily. "We're all awake now. It's presents time!"

Ginny laughed softly at her daughter's infectious excitement. "Well, I don't suppose we'll be getting back to sleep any time soon."

"Ginny!" Her mother frowned at her, then relented, seeing that her descendants all seemed to be wide awake. "Alright, we'll do presents now."

Lily's shout was loudest, accompanied by those of Hugo and Lucy. They dove under the large tree to pull out the first presents.

"This one is for Albus," said Lily. Albus immediately recognized the shape of the box from previous Christmases, and opened it to find a burgundy sweater with the letter 'A' on it.

"I hope you like it," said his grandmother. Albus heard James chucking softly behind him.

Soon the nine-year-olds had dug out almost all the presents. Victoire glanced over all of them and raised her eyebrows. "Where is one for Lewis?"

"Oh... right... Lewis." Molly quickly waved her wand behind her back and conjured another box.

"Here it is!" exclaimed Lucy, pulling out the box that she hadn't noticed before and giving it to Lewis.

"And here's one for James," said Lily, finally lowering her voice. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small envelope, handing it to him.

James looked at the envelope, surprised. "Er... thanks, Sis." He slowly took it from her, not taking his eyes off of the golden snitch sticker that sealed it.

"Don't open it yet," Lily said quickly. "Wait until you're back at school."

James nodded, still staring at the snitch. "Okay."

Once all the presents were doled out and the excitement had faded everyone started to feel sleepy again, and began to retire. Bill adamantly refused to let Teddy leave the room until Victoire was already upstairs in her own, with the door tightly shut. The girl hadn't yet let go of the beautiful necklace that her boyfriend had given her, and her cousins imagined that she would fall asleep still clutching it tightly.

Hermione bent down and scooped up Hugo, who had fallen asleep on the floor. Turning, she found that everyone else had already gone back upstairs, except for Harry, who was staring at the tree.

"Are you okay?" she asked softly, stepping close to him. He tended to get like this during Christmas. It had always been somewhat of a tumultuous holiday for him, especially since he had lived through ten of his first eleven Christmases without receiving a single present. He was fingering the snitch-shaped pin that Ron had chosen when he and Hermione had gone looking for a present for him.

He looked at her, his green eyes settling on her brown ones for the millionth time. "Yeah."

She held his gaze, knowing each and every one of his expressions better than her own. Shifting Hugo against her shoulder, she reached up her free hand and placed it on his shoulder for a moment, then reached into her pocket. "Here. Merry Christmas." She placed a small box in his hand.

He frowned, gesturing towards the pin. "You already gave me something."

"That was from me and Ron," she explained. "This one is from me."

He opened the box and pulled out a golden watch. As soon as he touched it he could sense the enormous amount of magic that this watch contained, more than any object he had ever touched before. "Wow," he said reflexively, impressed.

"That watch contains every spell I know," said Hermione. "Whenever you need help with something, or you're in danger, the watch will react to your thoughts, providing the spell you need. It will also shield you."

He smirked. "Worrying about me as always, Hermione?"

She smiled sheepishly. "As always, Harry."

He gazed at her appreciatively. "Thank you."

Hugo stirred on her shoulder. She looked at her little red-haired son, then back at Harry.

"We should get back to bed," said Harry. "Ron and Ginny will be wondering."

"Right," said Hermione with a laugh. Wouldn't be the first time.

Harry watched her carry Hugo up the stairs, then looked back down at the golden watch. It was amazing how intensely the watch seemed to radiate her power. As he placed it on his wrist, the memories flooded his mind.

Once more he saw her defeat the Devil's Snare during their first year at Hogwarts, brew the Polyjuice Potion during their second, use the Time-Turner during their third, teach him the Four-Point Spell she had invented during their fourth, as well as the summoning charm that he would use to escape from Voldemort, single-handedly create and secure Dumbledore's Army during their fifth, warn him about the Half-Blood Prince during their sixth, and... well, she performed just about every bit of defensive magic imaginable during their seventh year, not to mention saved his life so many times that it embarrassed him to try to remember them all.

He stared at the watch, and knew at once that as powerful as he was, she was still more powerful with her limitless brilliance and resolve. Now that he had her power protecting him, he felt more secure than he ever had before.


	14. Perry the HouseElf

**A/N: So here's a short chapter, but it serves as the launching pad for the next part of the plot. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: The Andersons are mine, the Potters aren't.**

**Chapter 14: Perry the House-Elf**

The New Year brought with it a fresh batch of snow, but the following day the sun shone brightly in the southern sky, and the new layer began to melt quickly. At the end of the garden, between two large bushes, a small, grassy mound was exposed. On one side of the small mound was a large, perfectly smooth white stone. As Harry passed by the window facing the garden that afternoon, he caught sight of the mound, and froze.

Bill appeared beside him, following his gaze. "Fleur takes care of it more lovingly than any other part of her garden."

Harry smiled sadly. It was there that twenty years ago he had dug the grave for Dobby the house-elf, who had died saving his life.

"Do you want to go see it?" Bill asked. Harry nodded, and followed his brother-in-law out into the garden, and up to the grave. Albus and James tagged along behind their father.

Albus looked down at the white stone, reading the words carved upon it. "Here lies Dobby, a free Elf."

"And a great elf he was, Master Potter, to be sure." The Potters and Bill spun around as one towards the source of the small voice. A young house-elf stared up at them, his large eyes wide and apprehensive. "Perry is sorry!" he immediately said, holding his hands above his head. "He did not mean to disturb Master Potter and his family."

"Perry!" exclaimed James, recognizing the house-elf he had worked most closely with in the kitchens. Albus also recognized the house-elf as the one that he and Rose had helped in Professor Markan's class on Halloween.

"Young Master Potter," Perry replied, bowing low, one of his hands clutching nervously at the blue and bronze towel that he wore like a toga.

"How do you do?" Harry asked kindly. He had known that Kreacher had brought fellow house-elves here inside the Fidelius Charm to visit Dobby's grave, but this was the first time he had ever encountered a stranger within the charm, and it rattled him somewhat.

"Perry does well, Master Potter, and kindly thanks you." Perry bowed even lower, his long nose touching the snow.

"Here to visit Dobby?" asked Bill.

"Yes, Master Weasley."

"Kreacher didn't come with you?" Harry asked, a little concerned about a stranger being within the Fidelius Charm unsupervised.

"No. Perry came alone."

"Kreacher?" James asked. He frowned, trying to recall if he had seen Kreacher at all during his entire time working in the kitchens. "Does Kreacher still work in the kitchens?"

Harry glanced at his son.

"Yes, young Master Potter," Perry replied.

"Why haven't I seen him in there?"

Perry hesitated. "Kreacher works in different parts of the castle at different times of the day. Young Master Potter hasn't seen him because he always comes to the kitchens in the evenings."

Albus saw the house-elf reach behind him and pick up a small chunk of snow, crushing it against his leg. It seemed as though the house-elf was discreetly punishing himself for what must have been a lie.

"Do you want to come in, Perry?" Harry asked. Bill glanced at him. "If it's okay with you, that is," he added with a significant glance at Bill.

"Yes, of course it is," replied Bill, catching and understanding the look immediately.

"No, thank you," Perry replied humbly. "Perry is quite fine out here."

"Come in. I insist," said Harry.

Perry hesitated. "Very well. Perry will enter at Master Potter's insistence." Hanging his head low, he followed the humans back to the house.

"Hermione," Harry called as they entered. "We have a visitor."

Hermione entered the room, confused as to why Harry had called her. Her eyes widened when she saw the house-elf.

Perry, however, froze the moment he saw her. His eyes immediately fell to the amulet that hung around her neck. "No!" he yelled. "Perry must go! He should not come in here!" And with that the house-elf ran out of the house, retreating all the way back to Dobby's grave.

"Damn," Harry muttered, glancing down at the amulet he had given Hermione for her birthday. James pursued the house-elf, and Albus followed him. Harry hung back, watching with a sense of pride as his sons did exactly as he would have.

"Perry," said James, catching up to the house-elf at the grave. "What's wrong?"

"Perry must go," said the house-elf, quickly performing some elven ritual of respect at the grave. His hands waved over the grave in turn, and he was muttering a string of words under his breath in some language that neither boy recognized.

"Why?" asked James.

"Perry should be working."

"It's the holidays. There aren't many at school."

"What is the amulet that Aunt Hermione was wearing?" Albus asked.

James shrugged. Perry froze, then continued performing the ritual even faster.

"Why can't you tell us where Kreacher has been when I've been in the kitchens?"

Perry paused again. "Perry told Master Potter. Kreacher works elsewhere in the castle during that time."

"That was a lie."

"He goes into the Forbidden Forest, doesn't he?" asked Albus.

James glanced at his brother in surprise, as did Perry.

"How does young Master Potter know this?"

"I saw him there."

"What does he do in the forest?" James asked, rounding back on Perry.

The house-elf stared up at the boy fearfully. "Perry cannot say," he replied in a quiet voice.

"Tell us," James insisted.

Perry shook his head, returning to the ritual with even more vigor.

"Why can't you tell us?"

"It is forbidden," Perry replied quickly, not pausing the ritual.

"By who?"

Perry shook his head again.

"Forbidden by who?"

He quickened the ritual even further.

"Tell us!" James demanded.

"James..." Albus glanced at his brother uneasily.

James pulled his wand out of his pocket. Perry saw the wand and jumped nearly his own height in the air. "No! Don't attack Perry!" The house-elf covered his head with his hands. "Perry does not wish to hurt Master Potter."

"Oh? Then tell us whose command over the house-elves stops them from responding to the orders of humans!"

"Perry cannot say."

James waved his wand menacingly. "James!" Albus cried, aghast at his brother's threatening actions.

"The Sylvarum!" Perry yelled. He immediately threw himself to the ground and started banging his head into the snow.

James paused. "The wha—" But just then the self-punishing house-elf disappeared with a loud crack.

* * *

><p>"I told you not to summon him!" Sheryl Anderson reproached her son as the house-elf appeared beside her.<p>

"You need the help," Sam protested.

"I do not!" his mother insisted.

Sean watched the back-and-forth between his brother and mother with amusement. His mother always wanted to take care of everything herself, despite having the house-elf to help her. She was from a relatively poor family, and when she married Saul Anderson and came into co-possession of a house-elf, she didn't know what to do with it. She sent it to work at Hogwarts this school-year, since she certainly didn't need the help now that none of her children were at home.

Sam had summoned the house-elf for her repeatedly during the holidays, to help his mother cater to relatives who had visited them. Each time she had protested, but allowed the house-elf to give her the much-needed help, sending it back to Hogwarts afterwards.

"This house is a mess, Mum, now that everyone's left. We'll never get it clean without his help."

Sheryl finally relented. "Very well. Come, Perry."

Sean watched his mother and Perry enter the kitchen, then looked at his older brother. Sam smirked at him, and he smirked back.

"You know, if you two weren't so lazy, we would be able to get the house pulled back together without his help."

The boys turned to see their sister standing in the entrance to the living room, frowning at them with arms crossed. As shy as Sarah was around strangers at school, at home with her brothers she was the outspoken voice of reason.

Sam shrugged sheepishly. "Well, but we are so lazy. You should want to relax too, after a week with all the cousins."

"As far as I'm concerned, that was relaxation enough, compared to being at school. At least help me straighten out the living room."

The boys glanced at each other, then followed their sister into the living room. The house had been home to the Anderson family for generations, and over time the living room had come to look more and more like the Ravenclaw Common Room, which had been the Hogwarts home to the Anderson family for generations. The room was blue, with blue couches around a table and gold curtains in front of the windows. There were no stars painted on the blue ceiling, but the Andersons could imagine them there whenever they looked up, remembering the room that this one was based on.

They spent a fair amount of time working in there. Their little cousins really had made a mess. But by tea time they had finally managed to get the room back in order.

Sam plopped down on the blue couch, opposite his sister. "By the way, Sis, now that everyone's gone, there's something I've been wanting to talk to you about."

"What?"

Sam leaned forward. "Well, you were at that quidditch match that we nearly lost to Hufflepuff. That new seeker couldn't do a thing. He was awful."

"I noticed." Sarah had thought at first that Larry Turpin, who was in her year, had been confunded, but when she asked him afterwards he had been completely conscious of his errors. He simply didn't have the skills.

"We need someone better."

"You chose him, didn't you?"

"No one else tried out."

Sarah recalled the tryouts, when she had first met Michaela and Marcus. She had been so busy talking to them that she hadn't even noticed who had gone for the one vacant position on the team.

"But," Sam continued, "I know of at least one person in Ravenclaw who would be a far better seeker than he is." He watched her expectantly.

Sarah frowned at her brother. "No."

"Come on," Sam pleaded. "We need you. It's one thing to beat Hufflepuff simply by scoring, with that owl-boy they've got as keeper. It's quite another to beat Slytherin like that, with Flint in front of the posts."

Sean couldn't believe his sister would turn down an opportunity to play on the house team. He couldn't wait to be on the team. "Come on, Sarah. How can you not want to play? You love flying just as much as we do. And you're faster."

"But I'm not competitive like you guys are. Quidditch is just a fun hobby for me. I never planned to play competitively."

Sam grimaced.

"Come on," Sean insisted. "Do your duty to Ravenclaw."

"My duty? It's my duty to play on the team?"

"You're the only chance we've got," said Sam.

Perry entered the room, carrying a tray with a kettle and three tea cups on it.

"We've won both the Quidditch Cup and the House Cup the last four years straight. Is it really so important to win again?"

"Yes," said both of her brothers simultaneously.

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Fine." She turned to her older brother, who had clapped his hands ecstatically. "But on one condition."

"What's that?"

"Stop trying to flirt with Michaela."

Sam froze, an odd expression on his face. Perry set the tray down delicately on the table in the center of the room, turning for the exit.

"Who's Michaela?" Sean asked. Both of his siblings looked at him.

"A very pretty girl," Sam replied.

Sarah rounded on him. "She's my best friend!"

"I'm aware."

"So stop making things so awkward!"

Sam threw up his hands. "I like her. So sue me."

"Just stop!"

Perry quietly exited the room, realizing his error. He had not known that Miss Black was supposed to be with his Master. He had seen the interactions between Miss Black and Mister Potter, and had thought that they were supposed to be together. That was why he had brought the mistletoe into the kitchens that night and made it float above their heads, which made Mister Potter and Miss Black kiss.

Perry smacked his head against the wall. He had made a mistake. But he had not known.

Now he knew. He would not go against his Master's wishes again. He would not let Mister Potter and Miss Black kiss anymore.


	15. Invisible Walls

**A/N: Hey all. Sorry about the excessively prolonged period of time since my last update. Here's another chapter for you all.**

**I do some mid-scene POV-switching here, and it's come out a little strange, but there's a lot of emotions to be shown, particularly among the early-adolescent third-years. For a couple of scenes, particularly the dialogue at the Ravenclaw table, it might be better to take an omniscient-eagle-eye-view approach to picturing it, rather than through one particular set of eyes like I usually do. I'll go back to the smoother narratives in the chapters to come, no worries.**

**A note on Allison: I did in fact go back and change the color of her hair as I had originally written it, from brown to black. My visual conceptualization of her is based, along with her name, on Allison Lozz, and as the story goes on it's become harder and harder to break away from the black hair and from Allison's looks in general. So, black hair it is, and if anyone wants a better idea of what the character looks like than I can put in words, just google the actress.**

**Now, Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 15: Invisible Walls**

"James, are you alright?" Albus asked his brother. They sat in the living room of their home, having returned here for one night before going back to Hogwarts. The room was large but cozy, decorated mostly red and gray, with numerous pictures across the walls of various family members and friends of the Potters. A large brick fireplace sat at one end, while a barely-functional Muggle television that Harry had bought on a whim sat against an adjacent wall. The only other furniture in the room was three red couches and two tables, and a magical music box in the corner, making the room seem larger than it actually was. Everything was as clean as could be, as Ginny's mother had made sure she was very fluent in cleaning spells before she and Harry moved in together.

"Yeah, I'm fine," James replied, surprised by the question. He looked back down at the chess board that Uncle Ron had given him two Christmases ago, or actually now three Christmases ago.

"You acted... strange ...the other day, with that house-elf."

James shrugged. "I got angry."

"Because he wouldn't tell you about the Sylvarum?"

James leaned back against the couch. The Sylvarum was certainly not what he was thinking about. "Sometimes you just get sick of not knowing things."

Albus thought for a moment. "This is about that black box, isn't it? The one that got Uncle George all rattled."

James fixed his brother with a gaze that lasted several seconds. "Yeah."

"It was that girl that had it. The one that attacked us on Halloween."

"She... Yeah."

Albus could tell that James wasn't keen to talk about this, so he didn't ask anymore.

* * *

><p>Harry once more picked up Harry Dursley en route to Kings Cross. The Hufflepuff quickly ran off once he got onto Platform 9 34, seeking out his friends.

"So are you going to try to find out what the Sylvarum is?" Albus asked his father.

Harry thought for a moment. He had much bigger problems to worry about than some secret that the house-elves were keeping. Even though the death of Jonas Zabini had been laid aside by the Auror Department as just another unsolved case, there were still a number of black-market operations and other criminal messes to clean up.

He looked down at his sons. "Why don't you investigate that yourselves? Consider it your first Hogwarts quest." He kept his voice low so the surrounding families wouldn't know that he was giving his sons ideas that would likely lead them to break a few school rules.

"A quest?" Albus liked the sound of that.

"I wanna go on a quest!" shouted Lily. Around the Potters, people turned and gave them funny looks. Harry looked around sheepishly.

"Hi, everyone," said Rose, appearing with Allison. "What's this about a quest?"

"My dad wants us to find out what the Sylvarum is," Albus explained.

"The Sylvarum?"

"Something to do with house-elves."

"It's causing them to disobey orders from humans," said James.

Rose and Allison frowned.

"Well, just the orders to tell us anything related to the Sylvarum," said Albus.

"So why is it important?" Allison asked.

Albus glanced at his father uncertainly. Harry shrugged. "Often pure curiosity leads to the greatest discoveries."

"My mum taught you that," said Rose immediately.

Harry nodded.

"Well, count me in," said Rose.

"Me too," said Allison. Albus smiled at her weakly.

"I'll help when I can," said James, "though I'm rather busy." He looked around the platform.

"Well," said Harry, glancing at both of his watches, "it's time for you to go. Best of luck." His sons and niece waved at him and made for the train. He watched them go, thinking nostalgically of his own Hogwarts quests.

* * *

><p>"Alright there, Laura?" James sat down across the Gryffindor table from his best female friend, who was looking quite annoyed at something.<p>

"Could be better," Laura muttered.

"What's up?" Shane asked, sitting down beside James.

"It turns out," Laura started, in a highly exasperated tone, "that my own father is the reason that those bloody twins moved to this country."

James raised his eyebrows.

"My family and the Blacks ran similar types of businesses in their respective countries, and when my father took over last year, he travelled to the United States for a conference, where he met Mr. Black. Apparently they decided to join forces and merge their businesses, co-owning and co-managing from here in Britain."

Corner Industries produced all manner of magical products. It was probably the most successful such business in wizarding Britain, and had been for generations. James was hardly surprised that Mr. Corner had struck this deal, as it enabled him to spread to the much larger magical market across the pond.

"I'm surprised Mr. Black agreed to that deal," said Daryl. "That means he has to split the profits from the larger market with your father, and in return get his share of the profits from the smaller market here. He wouldn't gain anything from that."

"Well, he gains the skills that Laura's father has in the business," said Pearl, from beside Laura. On the other side of Laura, Selina gave a quick nod.

"Not to mention there must be perks to living here rather than there," added James. "Britain has the most renowned magical community in the world."

"Well that's beside the point!" Laura interjected loudly. "The point is that now they are here. Now those twins are here. And I had to deal with them last night, since my dear old dad decided to invite them over to dinner."

James fought down a spike of jealousy at the notion of Laura having dinner with Michaela. Laura had obviously not enjoyed it very much.

"I can't stand them!" she went on furiously. "They're so... so..."

"Annoying?" Pearl suggested.

"American?" offered Shane. Pearl and Selina laughed.

James leaned back out of the discussion. It was clearly better not to let his friends know that he and Michaela had kissed. He chanced a glance over Laura's head towards the Ravenclaw table. Michaela had her back to him as she chatted with Sarah. Immediately behind her at the Hufflepuff table, Marcus sat with the owl-boy keeper.

Michaela turned to continue encouraging Gary to sit with them. As she did, she spotted Potter staring at her from the Gryffindor table. She held his gaze for a moment, then looked away. "Come on, Gary, join us."

"N-No," the Hufflepuff replied meekly. He had sat with them once at the Ravenclaw table before the holidays, and had been thoroughly uncomfortable there, very conscious of the yellow on his robes in the midst of all the blue. He understood that these twins were new to the school, and new to the house system, and appreciated that they didn't care which house they made friends in. But Gary had been at Hogwarts for two and a half years now, and understood that it was the way of things for people to stick with members of their own house. He didn't like the idea of standing out.

"There's no problem with sitting with your friends," said Michaela. "It doesn't matter who's in what house."

The surrounding Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs were looking at her strangely. Gary looked around at them nervously, fingering the yellow on his robes.

"She's right," said Sarah quietly. "People take the house divisions way too seriously. They weren't meant to make people of one house dislike the people of others."

The quiet support from Sarah gave Michaela the final push she needed. She stood up and loudly addressed the surrounding onlookers. "Isn't that right? Why don't we sit with people from other houses? Why do I see such solid blocks of blue and yellow, not just in here but in the library and in classes and all over the school?"

"Y-you're m-mad," Gary stammered.

Michaela smiled at him. "I know I am."

Further down the Ravenclaw table, Sam stood up. "She's right." The surrounding Ravenclaws looked at their captain as though he had gone bonkers, but Sam ignored them and looked over at the Hufflepuff table, spotting his rival. "Well how about it, Smith? Wanna sit here?"

The Hufflepuff captain remained seated. "Have you lost your mind, Anderson?"

Sarah gave her brother a funny look, then turned away from him.

"You know what?" said Michaela. She got up from the Ravenclaw table and sat next to her brother at the Hufflepuff one, pulling Sarah with her. "We will move back and forth between these tables as many times as we like, to sit with our friends on both sides." Around her, several Hufflepuffs stood up and moved away, anxious to get out of her white-hot spotlight.

Back at the Gryffindor table, James frowned at the commotion. What in the world was she doing?

As the meal drew to a close, the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs closest to the twins were the first to rush out of the hall, away from the crazy Americans. James watched Michaela leave with Sarah, then went after her. He followed them in what he assumed to be the direction of Ravenclaw Tower, and it wasn't until the crowds had thinned considerably on the third floor that he called out to her.

She paused, not turning to him immediately. "You go ahead," she said to Sarah. "I'll meet you up there."

James approached and beckoned for her to follow him down a different corridor. He didn't stop until they were in front of the Trophy Room, well out of the way of anyone going back to any of the common rooms from the Great Hall, or anywhere else, for that matter.

Michaela followed silently, watching him. When he stopped, he simply stood there for several seconds, not looking at her. "What is it, Jamie?" she asked finally.

He turned to look at her. After several more moments he began dodging the subject. "That was impressive, what you did in there."

She gave a small smile. "Tried to do. You'd think there were freaking walls between the house tables."

"It's always been like that," said James.

Michaela shrugged. "It doesn't have to be." She looked into his eyes. "But you didn't bring me here to compliment me for what I did in the Great Hall."

James hesitated, then shook his head.

"You want to know what's going to happen now? Between us?"

"Yes," he replied immediately, letting out a breath.

She studied him for several seconds, watching as the discomfort appeared and grew on his face under her gaze.

Finally she held out her hand. "For now, how about a truce?"

James eyed her hand warily. He was still afraid of it, even though he was no longer sure that what he had felt that day on the train had been a wandless spell. He didn't even think now that it had been an actual spell. Nevertheless...

After several moments he finally worked up his Gryffindor bravery enough to reach out and grasp her hand delicately. He felt a chill the moment he touched her, and instantly flashed back into the memory of kissing her that had haunted his best dreams through the entire holiday break. She smiled and gave their joined hands a firm shake.

Suddenly a giant glob of raw egg appeared over her head, and fell onto her, splattering everywhere. The expression on her face changed so quickly that it scared him half to death, and in the next instant her hand was swinging across his face. Pain exploded from his cheek, and he fell back against the door of the Trophy Room, hitting his head.

Everything went foggy for several minutes. When he finally came to again, she was gone, and he was covered in the raw egg that had fallen on her. He stood up shakily and looked down at himself. Drawing his wand and pointing it at himself, he muttered, "Limpio." Most of the egg disappeared, but the smell remained.

He turned and faced the door of the Trophy Room, and within him the rage rose up like a fiendfyre. "Peeves!" he roared. He burst into the room, whipping his wand towards where he imagined his target would be, not that he could harm the poltergeist in any way.

"What?" asked Peeves, appearing from behind the 1995 Triwizard Cup. "I haven't done anything. Yet."

"Oh you haven't?" James roared back furiously, flicking some of the remaining egg off himself in the direction of the poltergeist.

Peeves laughed. "You look good, Potter. But I'm sorry to say that it was not I who did that. I haven't forgotten our agreement." Peeves had promised to not bother James or his friends in return for the occasional product from Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes, which Peeves never failed to put to good use.

James lowered his wand, though he maintained his glare. "Did you see anyone else around just now? Was anyone else in here?"

Peeves shook his translucent head. "No. I haven't seen anyone else."

James had no way of telling if the poltergeist was lying or not. Swearing under his breath, he turned and stalked out of the room.

* * *

><p>"I'm going to kill him," Michaela muttered furiously as she stormed up the spiral staircase in Ravenclaw Tower. "This time I really am going to kill him."<p>

As she approached the bronze eagle knocker she was dismayed to find no one else around to answer the riddle. Apparently she would have to do it herself.

"Your mind is brave, mine intellectual,

A problem this may be.

But beneath two minds exists one truth,

And this we see that you can see.

So tell me only what you already know

And into this hall of knowledge you may go."

Michaela was taken aback. Could the knocker tell that she was a Gryffindor? But what could the answer to the riddle be? What was something she already knew that corresponded to the cryptic words?

Beneath two minds exists one truth. What truth?

"Come on," Michaela urged herself. "Your best friend is a Ravenclaw. Think like Sarah."

The knocker waited silently.

"Come on, come on."

But she was still fuming at Potter, and couldn't really think all that clearly.

"How the hell should I know?" she cried out in frustration.

"Stop trying to think so logically," came a voice from behind her. She spun around and backed away from him. "This riddle was meant for you. My sister would be no more able to answer it than you are. And I know you already know the answer."

"Well apparently, since it's 'only what I already know.'" She took another step back away from him.

"Tonight in the Great Hall you did something great. You stood up. You stood up when all others remained seated."

"Thanks," said Michaela, wishing he would either answer the riddle or go away.

"The houses... they all seem to see these divisions created by the sorting as indications of who they should be, and who they should befriend. The Sorting Hat looks inside our minds and splits us into four groups based on what it sees there. Thus, everyone knows that the people in their houses are of similar mind to them, and therefore... most of them ...are content to just be friends with those people. Thus arise the invisible walls."

"But there's so much more to people than what their minds are like," Michaela protested. "It's what's in their hearts that matters."

"May your heart be as good as your words," said the bronze eagle knocker behind her, and the door opened.

Sam smiled at her, and her gaze softened a little. "After you," he said, gesturing inside.

She took a step towards the entrance, then turned back to him. "Thanks for standing up with me in there."

"Anytime."

She stepped into the common room and quickly spotted Sarah, making her way over. Sam made to continue following her, but stopped when he saw the look his sister gave him, and instead made for the dormitories.

"What happened?" Sarah asked.

"James finally got me good with a prank," Michaela muttered, her anger returning full-force.

Sarah let out a small laugh. "Well you can't win every time."

Michaela shook her head, not liking Sarah's reaction at all. "Oh no, it's different now. This is a whole new ball game."

Sarah frowned in confusion at the American idiom.

"This time James went way too far. And he is going to pay. I swear he is going to pay."

Sarah grimaced, unnerved by her friend's words.

Michaela's face grew dark, as though the light itself were receding away from it in fear. "He hasn't seen anything yet compared to what I'm going to make him suffer."


	16. The Rebel

**A/N: Hey all! Here's another chapter written entirely from one perspective, Rowling-style. This time we're looking through the eyes of Michaela, the character who's generated by far the most reaction from my peers thus far.**

**By the way, in case anyone hasn't yet deduced it, I am in fact a male, and thus don't actually have much personal experience with the ideas behind the rather cliche-heavy scene that opens this chapter. It was actually inspired by an exchange between the characters Roberta Pardo and Mia Colucci in the TV show **_**Rebelde**_**. Roberta is one of my all-time favorite TV characters, and much of the original construction of the personality of Michaela is inspired by her.**

**Now, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always, plus the above-mentioned inspirations.**

**Chapter 16: The Rebel**

"Alright, girlie." Michaela stroked the owl's black and white feathers lovingly, then attached the letter to her legs. "You know who to deliver this to, right?" The owl let out a hoot. Michaela placed a quick kiss on the top of her head, then held her out towards the open window. "Fly safely."

The owl took off through the window, faithfully carrying the letter to its destination.

"Michaela, now will you close that window? It's freezing!" Laura complained. She had just finished putting on her robes, and was now looking herself over in a mirror.

"Alright, Barbie. We wouldn't want you to catch a cold, now would we?"

"Oh, please. We're all going to catch colds if you keep opening that window in the middle of winter."

"Well excuse me for sending letters."

"There's an owlery for that!"

"I'm not going to keep my owl in an owlery!" Michaela generally hated stubbornness, but she knew herself to be stubborn about some things. There was no way she was going to keep her beloved Robin in a cage in some dusty old tower.

Laura rolled her eyes.

"I don't see why you don't just stay in the Ravenclaw dorm," muttered Selina, appearing from behind her curtain. "You practically live with them already. Go get them all sick."

Michaela rolled her eyes. "Haven't we been over this? Believe me, Cutie, I would if I could. But Sarah's dorm is full, unlike our precious one. Go figure. I would even sleep in their common room if there weren't always people studying in there."

Laura smirked. "Well, that's Ravenclaw for you."

Michaela shrugged. "And what's wrong with that? Heck, no wonder they're smarter than we are. At least they devote themselves to something."

"I devote myself to a lot of things!" Laura declared, looking herself over once more in her little mirror.

Michaela crossed her arms. "Oh, right. To looking like a barbie doll, for instance."

Laura let out a huff, putting down the mirror angrily. "Listen. Since you seem to care so little about what you look like, why don't you go down to the Great Hall and let us be."

"With pleasure," said Michaela, stepping past her towards the door.

"Hey," said Pearl, emerging from the lavatory, "what do you think?" She gestured to a pink stripe that now ran across her robes along the border between the red and the black.

"Cute!" declared Selina.

"Nothing like adding a little color," added Laura.

Michaela frowned, wrinkling her nose at the distasteful decoration.

Pearl caught her expression. "I'm not asking _your_ opinion."

Michaela smiled. "I realize. But I have an idea. Since you seem to like pink so much..." She stepped towards Pearl and drew her wand, aiming it at the girl's hair. "Pintedas Rosas."

Laura's eyes widened and her mouth fell open. Selina let out a harsh shriek.

Pearl looked around at her friends fearfully. "What? What did she do?"

Selina picked up Laura's mirror and held it up for Pearl, so that she could see that her hair was now hot-pink. Laura, meanwhile, rounded on Michaela. "You!"

Michaela turned and ran for the door. Laura pursued her all the way down the stairs into the common room, where a crowd of Gryffindors were preparing to descend to the Great Hall.

Michaela found herself held in by the crowds, and turned as Laura advanced on her. Laura drew her wand. "You intolerable..."

Around them, all the Gryffindors turned towards the commotion. Laura stood firm, her wand aimed at Michaela.

Marcus quickly emerged from the crowd, stepping between his sister and Laura's wand. "What's going on?" he demanded.

Laura stepped towards him until her wand was inches away from his chest. "Stand aside."

"What for?"

Behind Laura, Pearl and Selina appeared on the stairs. There were scattered laughs among the crowd. "Looking good there, Pearl," called Shane.

Marcus looked at the pink-haired girl. Confusion flitted across his face only briefly before he realized what had happened.

Laura stepped away from him and turned, aiming her wand at Pearl's hair. "Finite Incantatem." As Pearl's hair turned back to normal, Laura turned back and resumed pointing her wand at Marcus.

"Oh come on," said Marcus, "this is not necessary."

"Stand aside!"

James appeared beside Laura, facing Marcus. He looked over his shoulder at what he could see of Michaela, one eye and half of her forehead. "You did this?" He gestured towards Pearl.

Michaela stepped out from behind her brother and towards James as the increasingly-familiar anger swelled within her. She gave him one of her most mockingly sweet smiles. "Hi there, Jamie. So cute of you to defend your little barbie friends." She stepped right up to him, so that their bodies nearly touched. "How incredibly chivalrous you are."

He frowned at her, and she saw the faintest hint of confusion in his eyes. How could he be confused about anything, after what he did the other day? It was clear that he had decided to make himself her enemy once more, in the cruelest of ways.

She glanced at Pearl, then back at him. "You know, you deserve her. You two would make such a cute couple." She glanced at the surrounding crowd. "Wouldn't they make a cute couple?"

The onlookers remained still and silent, watching intently.

She looked at Pearl. "And he's such a good kisser, too."

It took a long moment for everyone to digest this statement. Then the clamor began in earnest.

"What?" demanded Laura, rounding on James. "You kissed her?" Shouts went up from amongst the other Gryffindors, who knew well of the war between James and Michaela.

Michaela stepped back alongside her brother and tugged on his arm, and together they ducked into the crowd, making for the portrait hole. Around them, the people continued to stare and shout at James.

"Did you really have to turn her hair pink?" Marcus asked once they were safely out of the common room.

"Oh believe me, I did," Michaela replied, unable to restrain her laughter.

Marcus laughed with her, shaking his head. "Oh, Michaela. Typical." They descended the first moving staircase. Then he stopped, his laughter disappearing for a moment. "But did Potter really kiss you?"

Michaela managed a grimace in the midst of her laughter. "He did."

"I'll kill him."

Michaela laughed even more loudly. "Typical, Marcus. Typical," she said, mocking him. "But please do."

Marcus maintained his seriousness for another moment, then started laughing again. "Pink hair. Not a bad idea at all. But try to behave yourself."

Michaela put on an innocent expression. "Me? Don't I always?"

Marcus rolled his eyes. "Of course. But you know what?"

"What?"

He smirked at her, drawing his wand. "Pintedas Rosas."

Michaela let out a squeak, trying to slap him as he took off laughing down the stairs. She quickly pulled out her own wand and undid the spell, then chased after him, all the way to the Great Hall.

* * *

><p>"Now," said Professor Zarin, glancing across the third-year Gryffindors and Slytherins. "Someone tell me how tinctures differ from other potions."<p>

James raised his hand.

"Mr. Potter."

"They are medications preserved in alcohol."

Zarin gave a wry smile. "Hardly surprising that you would know that one, Mr. Potter. Five points to Gryffindor."

He turned and gestured to the large cauldron that sat on his desk. "If any of you so much as touch this cauldron, you will land yourself in a long detention sentence. Not that that would be a change for some of you," he added with a glance back and forth between James and Michaela, who were sitting on opposite sides of the Gryffindors, Michaela right next to the Slytherins and James all the way over by the wall.

Nott and Montague led the Slytherins in laughing. The Gryffindors glanced at each other uneasily, still quite unsettled by Michaela's earlier revelation. Michaela noticed that the Slytherin girl immediately opposite the aisle from her was not laughing with her housemates.

"Miss Warrington." Zarin looked directly at the girl. "Come here."

The girl, whom Michaela now recognized as the seeker from the quidditch match, stood up and stepped up to the desk, standing beside it. Her movements were steady and confident, betraying no intimidation at being put in the spotlight. Several of her fellow Slytherins frowned at her back. Michaela found herself somewhat fascinated by the girl's movements, and instantly decided she liked her.

"Look into the cauldron," Zarin instructed.

She did so. As she leaned over it her eyes shut briefly, and she took a long sniff of whatever scent she could detect coming from the potion.

"Do you recognize the potion in there?"

She nodded, once more a steady motion with no hesitation.

Michaela chanced a glance at James. He was watching the girl intently.

"What is it?" Zarin asked.

"It's a tonic." The girl had a moderate Spanish accent, and Michaela liked her even a little better for this new difference.

"What kind of tonic?"

For the first time the girl hesitated a bit, though her expression didn't waver at all. "It's for birds, I think."

"You think?"

She nodded again.

"Why?"

"The smell. It makes me feel like flying."

Zarin looked at her for a moment. "You are a quidditch player, are you not?"

Another steady nod.

"So I would imagine there are many things that make you feel like flying."

"That's true," she replied, her expression still unwavering.

Zarin looked back over the class. "Who else here plays quidditch?" James and Shane both raised their hands. "Come up here."

Both boys stood and approached the desk, and Michaela thought that neither boy appeared to be nearly as confident as the girl was.

"Smell the potion, but don't touch it."

The boys did so.

"Does it make you feel like flying?"

"Yes, Sir," James replied immediately. Shane nodded in agreement.

Zarin looked over the class once more. "Now someone who doesn't play quidditch." His gaze fell on Michaela. "Miss Black, please come up here."

Michaela stood up and stepped forward, doing her best to mimic the confidence that the Slytherin girl had portrayed. As she stepped between the girl and James, she could feel him watching her out of the corner of his eye.

"Smell the potion."

Michaela did so. Immediately she felt like she was soaring, light as a feather. The classroom faded away and she was flying through the sky. A beautiful landscape passed beneath her, full of trees and hills and lakes.

She flapped her wings once. It was a strange but yet familiar sensation, not only feeling but hearing her own wings beat against the wind.

Then the sensation was gone, and she was back in the dark dungeon, her feet firmly on the ground. Zarin had placed a round plate over the cauldron, and was giving her a hard look.

A moment passed. Then he spoke. "What did you feel, Miss Black?"

"Like I was flying." She longed for the sensation to return.

She could still feel James watching her, and she chanced a quick glance at him. He had a funny look on his face, and she suddenly wished she were far away from him.

Just then the door to the classroom opened, and something silver appeared. As the glowing silver creature stepped towards the front of the room, Michaela saw that it was a cat.

The cat stopped, and from it came the voice of Headmistress McGonagall. "Miss Michaela Black, please come to my office immediately following the conclusion of this class."

Several of the Slytherins gave her smug looks, as did Shane and the barbie and her two devoted barbie followers. Marcus looked uneasy.

* * *

><p>Michaela stood in front of the gargoyle, not knowing the next move. The glowing silver cat had not given her any password. She had been in the Headmistress's office once before, upon first coming to the school with her brother, to be sorted, but she didn't remember the password from that time, and she doubted it would be the same one.<p>

"Everyflavor Beans." Michaela spun around. The Headmistress herself stood behind her, looking down at her sternly. As the gargoyle moved aside, the Headmistress gestured towards the stairs leading up to the office. Michaela stepped up them quickly but softly, the sound of the Headmistress's footsteps behind her sounding unbearably loud in her ears.

Soon they sat opposite each other, the Headmistress behind her desk and Michaela seated uncomfortably in one of the comfortable chairs in front of the desk. Around the room, the portraits of previous headmasters and headmistresses looked at her with mixed expressions. Michaela settled her gaze on the one with the kindest expression, an old man with bright blue eyes behind a pair of half-moon-shaped spectacles. She recognized him from an old Daily Prophet article: the legendary Albus Dumbledore.

"Miss Black," the Headmistress began, and Michaela immediately refocused her attention on her. "I must say, I admire what you did in the Great Hall the other day."

Michaela couldn't have been more surprised by this. She was at a complete loss for words.

"You are quite correct that the members of each house should not limit themselves to associating closely only with members of their own house. That is a mistake that many students make throughout their entire time here."

Michaela felt relief fill her, followed by pride.

"However," the Headmistress continued. That rising pride suddenly crashed. "I do not wish you to ignore traditions that have been part of Hogwarts throughout its entire existence. The four houses and their rivalries are constants here."

"That doesn't make it right," Michaela said, her confidence on the rise once more.

"Nevertheless as a student of this school you must respect the traditions here. I therefore must ask you not to make any more overt attempts to mix the houses."

Michaela frowned, but nodded.

The Headmistress lowered her voice somewhat. "That is not to say, however, that I do not wish you to continue encouraging your fellow students to become friends with all others, regardless of what house they are in."

Michaela nodded once more, the frown dissipating.

"And you too, Miss Black." The sternness in the Headmistress's gaze returned full-force. "Try to be friends with all your fellow students. Including those in _your_ _own_ house."

Michaela frowned once more.

"As for that little trick you demonstrated in your dormitory this morning, see that you do not repeat it."

How did she know about that?

"That is all, Miss Black. You may rejoin your fellow students." The Headmistress would say no more. She simply waited for Michaela to get up and leave.

Once the slightly-rattled girl had departed, the Headmistress shook her head. She turned to the other Black in the room.

"Don't look at me," said Phineas Nigellus angrily, infuriated by the rebelliousness of the girl. "She's no descendent of mine."

McGonagall simply looked down at her desk and shook her head once more.


	17. Into the Forest

**A/N: Hey all! Here's more. Albus's POV, with some switching back and forth during a couple dialogues. Also, a brief nod to my sister and other Twilight fans. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: What you recognize is not mine. What you don't recognize is.**

**Chapter 17: Into the Forest**

As January became February, Albus became less and less preoccupied with the Sylvarum. Classes were becoming more difficult, now that the first-years had basic ideas of each of the topics they were studying.

Rose, however, was persistent in her search, going through books in the library as quickly as she could. Still, the Sylvarum eluded her.

Albus approached her one evening in the library, wondering why she hadn't yet given up. Rose was leaning over a book, her head held up by her arms. Beside her, Allison had fallen asleep, her hair spread across the table like a black fan.

He sat down across from them, watching his cousin read. She was reading more slowly than usual, her eyes blinking heavily as they moved down each page.

"Still nothing?" Albus asked.

She looked up at him and shook her head.

Albus glanced at Allison, then back at his cousin. "How much longer are you going to stay in here for?"

Rose shook her head wearily. "I could spend the rest of the year searching this library and not find the Sylvarum."

"Not in here, perhaps." Albus turned around to see James standing behind him. "But why look in books? I prefer sources that can think and answer our questions directly."

Albus frowned, confused. James simply looked down at him and winked.

"Like what?" asked Rose.

"You look tired, cous," said James. "You should probably get some sleep. Albus, come to my dormitory tonight at ten."

Rose frowned, glancing between her cousins. James turned and left the library, and Albus cast her a weak glance back.

Rose shook her head and shut the book on the table, getting up to place it back on the shelf. Albus glanced at Allison uncertainly, wondering if he should wake her. He reached out and gently tapped her hand, which was resting a few inches from her face. Her fingers curled a little, but she didn't wake. Very slowly, Albus moved his hand towards the girl's face.

Rose returned and shook Allison's shoulder none-too-gently. "Allison." The girl awoke with a start, and Albus quickly withdrew his hand.

"Oh," said the girl, looking around herself in surprise. "I'm sorry, I fell asleep."

"We're going back to the common room," said Rose. Allison got up to follow her friend. Rose spared Albus only a quick glance. "Good luck with your quest," she muttered. A brief look of confusion crossed Allison's face, but it was quickly replaced by her weariness. Albus watched them leave the library.

* * *

><p>Albus hadn't yet been up the stairs past the first-year dorms. As he left his own dormitory and turned up the stairs rather than down them, the older students he passed looked at him quizzically. He knocked on the door to the third-year dormitory, hoping to be let in quickly, and escape from the gazes of the curious older students.<p>

The boy that opened the door was the one that Albus now knew to be Marcus Black, Michaela's brother.

"Hi?" said Marcus uncertainly.

"Let him in, Black." Albus heard his brother's voice from behind Marcus, sounding harsh.

Marcus frowned, but stood aside and let Albus enter the room. Albus looked around. The third-year boys' room looked much the same as that of the first-year boys. The image of a golden snitch decorated the curtain around what must have been James's bed. James stood beside the window, holding his broom.

As he opened the window, a chill breeze swept into the room. It was lightly snowing outside, but James mounted his broom and flew out, turning in the air to face back inside.

"Going to see Michaela, mate?" Shane asked with a chuckle. James shot him a glare, flying back into the room and turning once more, gesturing to Albus to join him on the broom.

Albus looked at the broom warily, still not knowing what James was planning. Suddenly James dismounted from the broom and passed it to Albus.

Albus raised his eyebrows. His brother was letting him ride his broom? James disappeared behind the curtain of his bed for a moment, and reappeared carrying a translucent bundle that Albus recognized immediately.

"Well go on." James ushered him onto the broom, then got on behind him, throwing the invisibility cloak over them. The cloak didn't quite reach over the front and back ends of the room, but in the snow and darkness these would be hardly visible to anyone more than a few feet away.

Marcus's eyes widened as the brothers disappeared from his sight. Potter had an invisibility cloak?

James kicked off, and Albus quickly shifted his focus as they flew through the window. It was colder outside in the winter night than it had looked.

The Forbidden Forest spread across the ground below like a dark shadow. James flew towards the edge of it, and Albus spotted their destination. Smoke billowed from the chimney of Hagrid's hut. As James landed in front of it, Albus wondered what Hagrid would make of seeing nought but a broom outside of his door when they knocked.

The door opened and Albus froze, seeing a massive crossbow aimed straight at him. "Who's there?"

"It's us, Hagrid," said James, shifting aside the cloak.

Hagrid lowered the bow, staring at the boys in confusion. "Harry's boys? But what are ye' doing out 'ere this late? Ye' should both be in bed."

Albus was still staring at the massive bow, terrified. "We just want to talk," said James.

"I'm sure," said Hagrid skeptically. He stood aside. "Well, come in then. But only for a short time. 'Fraid I haven't got any rock cakes for ye'."

"That's okay, Hagrid, we're not hungry," said James, stepping into the hut. Albus followed, finally managing to take his eyes off of the crossbow.

Hagrid sat down in an oversized chair and looked at the Potter boys. "So er... what did ye' come here at this awful hour ter talk to me about?"

"The house-elves," said James, sitting down in one of three smaller chairs in the room and leaning forward.

Hagrid's bushy eyebrows shot up into his bushy mane. "The house-elves? I ain't got much ter do with them. What can I tell ye'?"

"We know that at least one of them has been coming into the forest frequently. We're wondering what they are doing there."

"Well I ain't seen any house-elves in the forest. Dunno what they would be doing in there."

There was a loud flapping of wings outside, and a cry that sounded like that of an eagle.

"Even Buckbeak's come back fer the night," Hagrid muttered. "Dunno what ye' two are doing out this late."

"We're going to find out what the house-elves are up to," said James. "They're disobeying orders from humans."

"Well they do have ther own wills," said Hagrid. "Ye' should know that better 'an most, what with all yer Aunt Hermione's done fer them."

"House-elves are among the most loyal creatures in the Wizarding World," said James. "It's never been heard before of them defying commands outright."

Hagrid looked up at the ceiling of his hut. "Look, I dunno what ter tell ye'. I dunno anything 'bout what the house-elves are up to, and I doubt ther up ter anything."

"Fine," said James, standing back up. "Thanks anyway, Hagrid."

"Wait," said Hagrid, looking quite bemused. "Is that really all yer wantin' ter talk ter me about?"

"Well, like you said, it is quite late," said James. "And we're going to have to go into the forest ourselves now to find out what the house-elves are doing in there, so we'd best get a move on."

Albus stared at his brother in shock and terror.

"WHAT!" Hagrid shot out of his seat. "Into the forest in the dead o' night? Yer must be mad!"

James shrugged. "What would I be mad at?"

Hagrid frowned. "Huh?"

James looked at his brother. "Let's go." He opened the large door to the hut.

"Wait!" said Hagrid again. He looked between the Potter boys for several seconds, and then his great shoulders slumped. "Alright, if yer going then I'm going with yer. And wear that cloak o' yers." He grabbed his large, pink umbrella.

James looked at his brother with a knowing smile, then stepped over to him and threw the cloak back over them both. They followed Hagrid out of his hut.

"Hagrid," said James softly, "the forest is that way." Hagrid had begun trying to lead the boys back to the castle.

"Er... right," the half-giant muttered, turning towards the forest. Holding his umbrella at the ready, he led the boys in, looking around warily and still muttering. "Doubt we're gonna see any house-elves in 'ere. Doubt it."

It was nearly impossible to see. The forest sowed the darkness of the night into a dense black shroud, impenetrable beyond ten feet. Eerie sounds reached the boys' ears, shuddering vibrations that struck at the core of their Gryffindor courage. At one point Albus could have sworn he heard many sets of hooves galloping across the snowy ground.

A loud howl sounded in the distance. Hagrid raised his umbrella in that direction, frowning. "Not the full moon," he muttered to himself assuringly. "Just a wolf."

A twig snapped immediately behind them. All three spun around. Hagrid pointed his umbrella at the tall, cloaked figure that stood behind them.

The figure lowered his hood, and Hagrid lowered his umbrella. "Edmond."

The man at once struck both Albus and James as quite handsome. He had pale skin and dark hair. His eyes seemed to glow slightly around dark-brown irises.

"Rubeus. This isn't a safe place to be at night."

"I can fend fer myself," said Hagrid defensively.

"For yourself perhaps. But not for a pair of children as well."

Hagrid bristled with surprise. "I came alone!"

"No, you did not." The man was looking at a spot in the snow, which was illuminated just enough for a footprint to be seen that was far too small to belong to Hagrid. Albus felt James fidget uncomfortably beneath the cloak. "As big as you are, my friend, even you cannot alone make the sound of three people walking through the snow and leaves."

"Er... right," muttered Hagrid sheepishly.

The man approached the boys, reaching out a hand. Before Albus and James even had time to shy away, he was touching the cloak, brushing snow off of it. "This is quite an impressive cloak. It even makes the snow look like an illusion."

The boys stood tensely, waiting for the man to expose them. But he did not, turning instead back to Hagrid.

"So what are you doing leading a pair of children into the forest at this hour, Rubeus?" As he spoke from his new position, so close to the boys, Albus noticed something strange about his teeth.

"Oh... just... er... running an errand fer Professor Markan," Hagrid replied unconvincingly.

The man raised his eyebrows, crossing his arms. "Really? It's funny that Dimitrius would send both of us into the forest for errands on the same night."

"Er... right... isn't it?"

The man simply gazed at him.

"Oh alright," said Hagrid, shrugging hopelessly. "We're not here fer that. Just some research on the house-elves. These boys need it fer a class."

The man rolled his eyes. "You don't have to tell me the truth if you're so determined not to, Rubeus. Just make sure these boys stay safe."

"Er... yeah... okay."

"Well, best of luck on your mystery quest," said the man. "To all three of you," he added with a glance straight at the boys he couldn't see. With that he turned and stalked away.

"Er... wait... Edmond."

The man turned back to the half-giant.

"Is it true that ye'... er... drank from a centaur?"

The man grimaced, bearing his teeth to reveal that his canines were long and quite sharp. "I can't sustain myself on small, brainless creatures forever, Rubeus." Albus couldn't quite suppress a shudder.

"The centaurs aren' real happy about it."

"The centaurs are always unhappy about something. However I never intended for them to find out I had taken one of their own. It was a small one, an outcast runt. I suppose next time I shall have to be even more discreet in quenching my thirst." With that the vampire raised his hood over his face and disappeared into the darkness.

Hagrid and the Potter boys stared at the spot where he had disappeared for several seconds. Then Hagrid turned and started walking again. Albus and James followed, not quite remembering if they were actually going somewhere in particular.

"Hagrid?" James asked after minutes had already passed. "Who was that?"

"Edmond? He's a vampire. Good friend o' Professor Markan's."

Albus nearly stumbled over the cloak at the word 'vampire.' "Professor Markan is friends with a vampire?"

"Sure he is! Why do ye' think he left the Ministry? The Professor's friendly with all manner o' magical creatures, and most o' these creatures the Ministry has decided ter label as dangerous."

"Aren't vampires dangerous?" Albus asked a bit too loudly.

"Sure they are. But Albus, there are very few creatures in the Wizarding World that are inherently evil, an' those are only the ones tha' were created by dark magic. Inferi, fer instance. Nasty folk. But most creatures go about the world just looking fer the best way to survive an' prosper."

"In vampires' cases, drinking the blood of other creatures, including humans," said James skeptically.

"Exactly!" said Hagrid. "Now, no one could ever accuse a vampire o' being a nice guy an' all, though Edmond does try sometimes, but it's only the ones who become too obsessed with drinking from humans tha' give vampires ther bad name. An' o' course it's those tha' people hear abou'."

The half-giant certainly seemed firm in his beliefs, but Albus and James had heard far too many of these nightmare stories to learn to like vampires quite so quickly.

"Now then," said Hagrid, looking around. "Are ye' convinced that we're not gonna find any house-elves in 'ere?"

Albus blinked. He had forgotten what they had come into the forest for in the first place.

"Let's just go a little farther," said James.

Hagrid gave a pained look, but nevertheless turned again and began leading the boys deeper into the forest.

They walked on, looking around in the darkness. Several minutes passed. Finally Hagrid stopped again. "Alrigh', enough o' this. Ye' two got to be gettin' back to the castle now."

"We're going to keep looking," said James firmly, having by now shaken the notion of the vampire out of his mind and steeled his resolve once more.

Just then a white flash lit up the forest some ways ahead of them. "What was that?" Albus asked, alarmed.

James began moving quickly towards the place that had been briefly illuminated, and Albus had to run to keep up with him and stay under the cloak. But as they approached the area there was a sound like wood cracking.

A large twig came flying out of the darkness towards them. James threw up his arms.

Another, greater white flash lit up the area all around them. The boys looked around in horror, seeing that the trees were moving. Branches waved madly, and more twigs came flying at the intruders.

"Protego!" roared Hagrid from behind them, and a bright silver shield appeared between the boys and most of the wood projectiles. The trees began attacking Hagrid as well.

A particularly large branch came flying at the half-giant. "Reducto!" he shouted, and the branch burst. "Boys, run!"

A massive wall of snow and leaves rose up off the ground, blocking the boys from continuing in the direction they had been going. The boys turned and ran back the way they had come.

More and more trees came to life as the boys ran, though the attacks became somewhat less insistent. Suddenly James lurched forward, and Albus was pulled with him as he went tumbling over a large branch. The cloak flew off of them, landing some distance ahead, as the Potter boys found themselves face-first in the snow.

There was a loud crack behind them, and then a small hand was grabbing each of them. Another loud crack, and the boys were no longer in the snow, but on a wooden floor. Albus managed to turn and look behind him, catching a glimpse of a red-and-green towel-tunic just before it disappeared with a third loud crack.

"James!" It was Shane's voice. "You alright?"

James looked up and around himself in confusion. "What?"

Albus stood up and looked around. They were back in James's dormitory.

"What happened to you guys?" asked Shane as James stood up beside his brother, just as confused.

"We were in the forest," said James.

Shane frowned. "The forest? What for?"

"The trees started attacking us," said James.

Daryl raised his eyebrows skeptically. "The trees?"

"They just... came to life," said James, well aware that his friends must think him crazy right now.

Shane stared at him for a moment, then rounded on Marcus. "Tell your sister just to stay the hell away from James," he said threateningly.

"What?" Marcus highly doubted his sister had something to do with this. Potter was just crazy.

"And what about that house-elf that just brought you here?" asked Daryl.

"That was Kreacher," said Albus. He was fairly certain of it.

"Kreacher?" James looked at his brother. "So he _was_ in the forest."

Shane was still glaring at Marcus. "She must have done something to put him in this state."

Marcus simply rolled his eyes.

"Shane, Michaela had nothing to do with this," said James. At least as far as he knew. He had no idea why the trees had suddenly started attacking them.

"Then what's going on, mate?"

James shook his head. "I don't know."

"James," said Albus quietly, "what about the cloak?"

James's eyes widened, and he looked around quickly. The cloak had fallen off them just before Kreacher had arrived and apparated them away. It was still in the forest. James shut his eyes, swearing under his breath.

Not only had they not found out what Kreacher was doing in the forest or anything related to the Sylvarum, they had nearly been killed by trees. And they had lost their father's invisibility cloak. This was perhaps the worst decision James had ever made in his life.


	18. HeartShaped Boxes

**A/N: Hey all. So we're reaching that part of the year when life becomes at once much more stressful and also much more thrilling, and overall just much, much busier. You all know what I'm talking about. Nevertheless, I'll do my best to keep updating as often as I can, and best of luck to everyone in their coming trials and tribulations.**

**The title of this chapter was inspired by the title of the Manson song Heart-Shaped Glasses, which once caused quite a controversy online with its music video. I'm by no means a fan of the song or the band, but there was so much news about it that the name just kind of stuck. Well, Enjoy!**

**To ExtremeFanBoy: I'm glad you're enjoying the story so much, and it's great to see a fellow Rebelde-fan on the site. In answer to your question in the last review, however, all I can say is keep reading.**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 18: Heart-Shaped Boxes**

She soared through the sky, watching the landscape pass beneath her. It was the best feeling in the world, to be up here, to be completely free in the open air.

Suddenly she felt a tugging on her wing, and she was dragged back down to Earth.

Michaela opened her eyes. A red heart hung in the air, against the background of a blue wall. Frowning in confusion, she looked around, only to find Sam Anderson staring down at her.

Sitting up quickly, she looked around herself. She was in the Ravenclaw Common Room, lying on the couch. Hearts floated in midair around the room.

She spared Sam a brief glance. "What are you doing here?" she asked curtly.

He raised his eyebrows. "This is my common room. What are you doing here?"

She frowned, wondering the same thing. Apparently she had fallen asleep here the night before. How had that happened? She had been working on an essay for Potions with Sarah. About tonics...

She kept remembering the bird tonic, and the sensation it had given her. She relived the sensation in her dreams. It was incredible. She wanted to fly, to fly like a bird, free in the open sky. She longed to feel that sensation in reality.

"Michaela?"

She glared up at him. Once again he had disturbed her. "What?" she snapped.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I fell asleep here, that's all."

Sam frowned.

Michaela looked around the room. "You didn't do this, did you?" She gestured to the hearts that were now floating in a circle around them.

Sam looked around. "No. The sixth-year girls did, I think. They like to do this each year."

"Lovely," Michaela commented dryly. She stood up and stretched, noticing Sam watching her as she did so. "Can you not stare at me?"

He met her eyes. "Sorry."

"Michaela!" Sarah appeared from the door leading up to the dormitories.

"Hey. Thanks for leaving me here last night."

"I tried to wake you. But you were fast asleep."

"Wonderful," Michaela muttered. She really had no reason to be angry at Sarah, but her brother was pissing Michaela off so.

Sarah looked back and forth between her brother and her friend for a moment. Then she shrugged and gave Michaela as bright a smile as she could for not being particularly pleased at that moment. "Well, happy Valentine's Day."

"Thanks," Michaela muttered. "I'm going down to the Great Hall."

Sarah glanced at her brother. "I'll be right there." After Michaela had departed she rounded on him. "Do you want me to play seeker next week or not?"

Sam threw up his hands defensively. "I do! Of course I do."

"Then stop it!" his sister yelled. With that she turned and stormed dramatically out of the common room, catching up with Michaela on the spiral staircase.

They stomped together in silence for a while. Then Michaela spoke. "I want to learn to fly."

"Pardon?"

"On a broom. I've never learned before."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

Sarah was quite surprised. They had talked about quidditch many times before, and about Sarah's flying abilities. Michaela had never talked about flying herself, but Sarah, coming from a family of quidditch players, had always just assumed that Michaela knew how to fly as well. "That's fine. I'll teach you."

Michaela smiled for the first time that morning. "Thanks. Can we start today?"

Sarah laughed. "You're really that eager? Well alright, I suppose we can. We'll go down to the quidditch pitch after classes."

"It'll be your Valentine's Day present to me," said Michaela, her expression having brightened considerably from when she left the common room. This would be a good Valentine's Day after all.

Sarah laughed again, and together they walked nimbly down the rest of the way to the Great Hall.

* * *

><p>"James?"<p>

"Huh?" James looked at Shane.

"You were staring, mate," said Shane quietly.

James looked back over at the Ravenclaw table for a moment, then pulled his gaze away again. "Yeah."

Shane watched as a sixth-year couple at the Hufflepuff table shared a kiss. "Not a good day to have a crush, I suppose."

James followed his gaze, remembering his kiss with Michaela for the millionth time. He looked down at his empty plate. "Let's go."

He stood up, and Shane quickly grabbed his last bite and followed. "We still have a while before class, mate," he pointed out through a mouthful.

"I know. I'm going back to the tower."

They met Daryl and Dom on the way back. "Alright there, mate?" Daryl asked, noting James's expression.

"I'm fine," James replied quickly. In the common room he passed Laura and Selina without greeting them, and they looked at him quizzically.

He marched straight back up to the dormitory. Once the door was shut behind the four he rounded on Shane. "If you ever mention anything about a crush like that in the Great Hall again, I'll hex you."

Shane's eyebrows shot up. "Er... sorry, mate." As if all of Gryffindor wasn't already quite familiar with the so-called 'James-Michaela Madness.'

"James," said Dom.

But James didn't hear him. "I don't want people to talk anymore about what happened between me and Michaela. I don't want to be reminded of it. There has to be something else they can gossip about."

"James," said Dom.

"Sorry, mate," Shane repeated.

"What is it, Dom?" asked Daryl, noticing the smaller boy. James and Shane turned towards him as well. Dom pointed to James's bed. James looked and frowned.

On the bed, right on the center of the scarlet-and-gold blanket, sat a small red box, shaped like a heart.

James moved to the foot of his bed, not taking his eyes off the box. He made no move to pick it up or even touch it.

"Aren't you going to open it, mate?" Daryl asked.

James stared at the box warily. "Maybe."

"Oh come on," said Daryl, advancing towards the box. "It's a gift."

"Wait!" exclaimed James as Daryl made to touch the box.

"It could be jinxed," added Shane, reaching to pull Daryl away.

Daryl glanced back at him skeptically. "A jinxed Valentine's Day gift?"

"I wouldn't put it past her," said James.

Daryl rolled his eyes and reached out his hand again. James made to grab

it and pull it back, but it was too late.

Daryl picked up the box and held it in one hand for a moment. Then he placed his other hand on the lid and lifted. The lid came off so easily that it flew from his hands, pulling a piece of paper attached to the bottom with it.

"It's chocolate!" exclaimed Dom. Four pieces of chocolate fitted inside the heart, one large one in the center with two above it on either side, filling the arches, and one below it in the point.

"Great," muttered Shane, "she's trying to poison you."

This seemed like a bit much to James. Even the she-devil wouldn't go so far as to try to poison him... would she?

Daryl had placed the box back on the bed and bent down to pick up the lid. He pulled off the piece of paper that was stuck to it and looked it over. "Maybe Michaela might try to poison you, but I doubt Pearl would."

"Pearl?" asked Shane incredulously. Daryl made to hand the piece of paper to James, but Shane grabbed it from him and read it quickly. "It's from Pearl?"

James took the piece of paper from him. Sure enough, the name 'Pearl' was written in cursive at the bottom, in pink ink.

"I don't believe it!" exclaimed Shane. "She likes you?"

James dropped the paper on his bed and turned on his heel, exiting the dormitory. In the common room he sought out Laura and her friends, but they were no longer there.

"Hi, James." James looked down to find Rose looking up at him. "Are you okay?"

James smiled kindly at his cousin. "Yes, Rose, I'm fine, thank you." With that he continued out of the common room towards the Charms classroom, where the Gryffindor third-years had their first class of the day with the Ravenclaws.

Rose watched her cousin go, wondering if he had been looking for Michaela. She rolled her eyes. She would never do to any boy what Michaela was doing to James.

Albus and Allison approached her simultaneously from opposite sides. "I think it's time to go to class," Allison noted.

"Yeah," said Albus, glancing towards the portrait hole. "What's wrong with my brother?"

"Oh, if only you could understand." The response came from Shane, who had appeared with Daryl and Dom on the stairs behind him. The third-year boys quickly brushed past the first-years, following their friend out of the common room.

"My guess is something having to do with Michaela," said Rose.

Albus shook his head. Not her again.

"It is Valentine's Day after all," his cousin added.

"Yeah," said Albus, glancing around the room at the older couples that were leaving the common room together.

"I think it's time to go to class," Allison repeated.

"Right," said Rose. She and Albus began walking alongside Allison. They made their way through the portrait hole and down the Grand Staircase, bound for Potions.

"I don't think I should ever like a girl when I'm older," said Albus, still watching the older couples.

Rose raised her eyebrows at him. "I'm sure you will. But why shouldn't you?"

"Because look at James. Girls make guys go crazy."

Rose and Allison giggled. "Well that's what's supposed to happen," said Rose.

"Your parents nearly killed each other when they were in school together," Albus pointed out. His statement was based on what he had overheard from when his and Rose's parents talked about their time in school together.

"But they didn't," said Rose.

"You should hear about the time my dad found out my mum was a witch," said Allison. Albus and Rose waited for her to go on, but she didn't. Instead she pulled a card out of her robes and looked at it for a moment. "Last week my mum sent me this card, told me to give it to a boy on Valentine's Day if I wanted to."

Rose raised her eyebrows. "Do you like a boy?"

Allison shook her head. "No. Not yet. I don't _like_ a boy. I like a boy as a friend though." She cast a very brief, shy glance at Albus, then held out the card for him to take.

Albus stared at the card for a moment before taking it. "Er... thanks."

When they reached the dungeons, the Slytherins were huddled outside the classroom. A boy's voice sounded from within the group. "You're supposed to kiss on Valentine's Day."

A couple of girls giggled. "Kiss Vera!" one of them shouted. Vera Sinley was prodded into the middle of the group by her friends.

"Go on, Xander," said one of the boys. With some hesitation, Alexander leaned in and kissed Vera.

Rose and Allison shared a surprised glance.

After about two seconds, Alexander pulled back from the girl and looked at his friends. "See? Nothing to it."

The boys chuckled, while the girls all looked at Vera, giggling madly.

"Malfoy," said Alexander harshly, "come here and kiss a girl." Albus spotted Scorpius standing on the outskirts of the group. Two large boys turned and forcefully pulled him into the center.

The girls all seemed to shy away from Scorpius, and as Alexander looked at their expressions he laughed loudly. "Of course! What respectable Slytherin girl is going to kiss Malfoy?"

It was then he spotted the Gryffindors watching them, and his eyes narrowed. "Weasley! Come here and kiss Malfoy! You're from just as worthless a family as he is."

The two large Slytherin boys moved towards her. She backed away in terror.

"What's going on here?" Professor Zarin stood in the entrance to his classroom, and was looking at his nephew furiously. The two large boys froze and looked at each other uncertainly.

"Nothing, _Professor_," Alexander replied pointedly. "We're just celebrating Valentine's Day."

"Ten points from Slytherin," said Professor Zarin, glancing over the members of his own house. Then he turned to the Gryffindors. "And five points from Gryffindor, for standing outside the classroom when class is supposed to be beginning."

Allison hurried forward and tried to squeeze past the professor into the room. He looked down at her for a moment, one eyebrow quirked, then stepped aside so she could pass. Albus and Rose quickly followed, Rose casting one last fearful glance at the Slytherins.

* * *

><p>Michaela was very excited. She resisted the urge to break into a run to the pitch as soon as she and Sarah left the castle, brooms in hand. Sarah had borrowed Sean's broom for her friend to use.<p>

Sarah couldn't help but smile. Michaela's excitement was contagious. She just hoped that Michaela didn't get too excited and do something that would hurt herself, or Sean's broom.

They passed through the Ravenclaw locker room, and Sarah paused. On the bench sat a small, heart-shaped red box.

Michaela had nearly left the locker room when she realized her friend was no longer beside her. She turned and followed Sarah's gaze down to the bench, frowning.

Sarah picked up the tiny envelope that sat on top of the box, and the confusion on her face was replaced by a deep frown. "It's for you."

Michaela's face fell, and she leaned Sean's broom against the wall. "From your brother?"

Sarah nodded, yanking the tiny card out of the envelope and opening it. She quickly scanned down it, then threw it aside. "Yep."

Michaela approached the bench and pulled the lid off the box, looking at the chocolates inside. After a moment she shrugged and popped one into her mouth. "Whatever. Chocolate is chocolate. Take all you like."

Sarah frowned at it distastefully. It wasn't that she didn't like chocolate. On the contrary, she loved chocolate. Who didn't? But the notion that this chocolate came as a Valentine's Day gift from her brother quite repelled her. "It's yours."

Michaela put the lid back on the box and tossed it in her robes. Then, her excitement returning full-force, she grabbed Sean's broom and ran out onto the pitch.

Sarah looked after her for a moment, then picked up her brother's card from where she had thrown it on the ground and tore it up. "He'll never learn," she muttered.

She nearly crashed into Michaela on the way out onto the pitch. The Gryffindor was standing just outside, staring up into the sky. Sarah followed her gaze.

High above them, a girl in green jetted across the pitch, chasing a glint of gold. The snitch shifted left, then sped back to the far side. Carla gave chase, spinning in the air each time the snitch changed direction.

Suddenly the snitch made a turn towards the ground. Not just any ground, though. The snitch was heading for the ground right where Michaela stood. Carla continued chasing it, not noticing the two girls that were ahead of her.

Michaela quickly stepped out of the way, and Sarah adeptly grabbed the snitch out of the air as it passed her. Carla pulled up suddenly in shock as the object of her intense focus disappeared from her view. She managed to stop herself a foot above Sarah's head.

"What are you two doing here?" Carla asked, her accent thicker than she normally let it be.

Sarah let go of the snitch, letting it flit back up into the air. Carla watched it for a few moments before looking back down at the Ravenclaw.

"Michaela wants to learn to fly. She's never learned before."

Carla raised her eyebrows, turning her gaze to the Gryffindor. "Really?"

Michaela nodded, turning Sean's broom in her hand with some discomfort.

Carla looked back at Sarah. "You're going to teach her?"

"Yes," Sarah replied.

Carla looked somewhat skeptical, and Sarah mounted her broom and flew up to her height.

"If you want to help, you're welcome to," said Michaela, looking up at the Slytherin.

Carla stared at her for a moment, then glanced back at Sarah, who was now hovering slightly above her as she looked down at her friend in surprise. Carla raised herself so that she was equal with Sarah once more and looked back at Michaela. "I have to practice with the snitch, before the match next week. I'm sorry."

Michaela nodded, casting a quick glance at the girl who would be opposing Carla as the Ravenclaw seeker next week. Carla took off after the snitch once more.

Sarah watched her opponent for a moment, then looked back down at Michaela, who was looking at the broom in her hand uncertainly. She landed on the ground beside her, gently touching her arm.

Michaela mounted the broom and kicked off, hovering just above the ground. She looked a little unsteady at first, and Sarah stayed close in position to catch her, but Michaela quickly gained her balance and flew higher.

Quickly gaining confidence, she flew forward several yards. Sarah stayed beside her, but gave her more space. Michaela tried to turn, and had some trouble with it, but the next time she tried she was far more steady.

Sarah was very impressed. Michaela seemed a natural. The balance seemed to come to her so easily. After about fifteen minutes Michaela seemed perfectly steady on the broom, except when she tried to turn so sharply. Fifteen minutes later she seemed able to go up and down with little effort.

High above them, Carla went after the snitch again and again. Sarah took a moment every now and then to observe her opponent's progress. She was confident she could beat the Slytherin, despite the fact that this would be her first time playing seeker in an official match.

A while later Carla seemed to tire, and she held the snitch tightly as she stopped and watched Michaela. Michaela was by now flying in steady circles around the pitch, going up and down with increasing steepness. The Slytherin hesitated for several moments, then flew down to the novice. "You fly very well."

Michaela stopped and hovered unsteadily, managing to slowly guide her broom around towards her. "Thanks. And you seem like quite a good seeker."

Sarah hovered up beside her friend, opposite the Slytherin.

Carla glanced away, a bit of a grimace on her face. "Perhaps."

Michaela frowned. "Perhaps what? You're very good."

Carla's tan face darkened slightly, and her accent thickened once more. "Thank you. But I'm not good enough."

"Why's that?"

Carla shook her head and shrugged. "I couldn't beat Potter."

Michaela rolled her eyes, cursing James Potter in her head, not for the first time that Valentine's Day. "To hell with Potter! You're better than him. You just got unlucky."

Carla shrugged. "Perhaps. But losing is losing."

Michaela shook her head. "That's not what's important..."

The Slytherin cut her off. "It's what's important to Flint."

Michaela frowned, not understanding the relevance.

"He's the Slytherin captain. If I lose again, he'll kick me off the team."

Michaela's eyes widened, and she glanced uneasily at the Ravenclaw seeker beside her.

Carla didn't know that one of the girls she was talking to was the seeker she would be facing next week, and she didn't know what to make of the strange expressions on their faces. "Em... okay. It was nice talking to you. Keep up the good work." With that she turned and flew down into the Slytherin locker room.

Michaela and Sarah shared a long glance. Sarah was well aware of the pressure on her shoulders.


	19. Choices

**A/N: Hey all. Life has begun again in earnest, and it took me a while to get this chapter properly edited. And yeah, I realize this is the ultimate cliche chapter title, but it was bound to show up sooner or later.**

**You can guess from the last chapter what happens in this one. I got much more ambitious this time in calling the quidditch match, and I'm not sure how well it came out, but it was fun to write. I even played around a bit with the magic of the snitch, which I'll do more with later on. Well, you guys will see. Lots of POV switching, but it's all fairly blatant.**

**Anyway, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always. A little extra creativity with quidditch tactics and snitches, but Rowling is still the true mind behind the magic.**

**Chapter 19: Choices**

"Pearl?"

She looked at him, and her eyes widened as he approached.

He stopped nearly two meters from her and held up the box, which was now devoid of chocolate. "You gave me this?"

She looked at the box and nodded, eyes still wide.

James had been half-hoping this might have been a prank from Michaela. He struggled to restrain his frown. "Why?"

Pearl looked away from him. "I've been thinking about what Michaela said. About us making a cute couple."

James raised his eyebrows. "We're friends, Pearl."

"I know." She looked back at him, finally meeting his eyes. "But maybe we could make a cute couple."

"We're fourteen," James pointed out.

Pearl shrugged. "I would like to try."

James stared at her. Had she gone mad? He was fourteen, and he had no desire to have a girlfriend. Well, one that wasn't Michaela...

She turned and took a bold step towards him.

Thoughts of Michaela raced through his mind. He watched the girl in front of him, who looked nothing like Michaela in any way.

She took more steps towards him, closing the distance far too quickly.

He imagined kissing her, and felt nothing of what he felt when he imagined kissing Michaela.

She stopped right in front of him. There she waited.

An image of Michaela stood in his mind. He focused on it, and the image of her frowned at him. Michaela hated him, and it didn't seem like that would ever change.

He looked down at Pearl, into her eyes. "Okay."

* * *

><p>Rose had no clue why she was going to the Ravenclaw vs. Slytherin quidditch match. She had no particular desire to see it. Though she felt a much stronger connection to Ravenclaw than to Slytherin, she couldn't care less who beat who in quidditch. Slytherin would never be able to match Ravenclaw in intelligence.<p>

Yet Albus and Allison had both wanted to go, if for nothing else than to get away from their Transfiguration essays, which Rose knew they should all be working on. So she followed them up into the stands, which were already packed with cheering fans from all four houses.

They walked down the aisle between the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws, looking for room to sit.

"Albus!" Sean called from the Ravenclaw side.

"Hi," Albus responded. He and Rose and Allison squeezed themselves onto the bleacher opposite the aisle from the Ravenclaw boy.

"I'm surprised so many Gryffindors came to this match," said Sean. "But I guess everyone likes watching Slytherin lose."

Rose cast Albus and Allison each a hard glance. Her Transfiguration essay hovered in her mind.

"I'm cheering for Ravenclaw," said Allison brightly.

Sean smiled. "Good. Both my brother and my sister are playing this time."

"Really?" Albus hadn't known that quidditch was such a big deal in Sean's family.

Sean nodded proudly. He loved that Sarah was playing now too. She was a much better seeker than Larry Turpin. He couldn't wait to join his siblings on the team next year. Together the Andersons would dominate the Quidditch Cup.

At that exact moment, down in the Ravenclaw locker room, the two elder Anderson children stood together, watching their teammates psych themselves up for the match. Sam observed how tightly his sister was clutching her broom.

"You'll do fine, Sis."

"I know." Sarah glanced sideways at her brother. He of course couldn't know that it wasn't the fact that this was her first official quidditch match that concerned her. She knew that she was up to par, and after two-and-a-half years in Hogwarts she was quite adept at ignoring the crowds. And after watching Carla last week, she was confident that she could beat her. What concerned her was what would happen to Carla when she did.

The Slytherin seeker seemed like a nice girl, very different from her housemates. Sure, she had seemed somewhat rough around the edges, but Sarah understood that that was a very thin layer created through dealing with other Slytherins for so long. Carla wasn't supposed to be nice to people of other houses. Therefore, Sarah could guess that she was, in fact, nice.

The notion that she was the reason Carla would get kicked off the Slytherin team burdened her.

"Alright, everyone," said Sam. "It's nearly time. We manhandled Hufflepuff in the last game, despite the close finish. And now, thanks to my dear sister, we have the last piece of the puzzle." He cast an appreciative glance at Sarah, as the other Ravenclaws gave her a small cheer. "This should be a very easy game. We just play it the same way we did against Hufflepuff, dominating the quaffle. And this time we get the snitch as well." He winked at Sarah, as the other Ravenclaws laughed and cheered again.

Sarah gave a small smile, already feeling guilty.

In the Slytherin locker room, the team began to march out onto the field. Carla walked steadily, sensing Flint come up beside her. "Don't screw up this time," he said in a low, threatening tone.

As they stepped onto the field, the Slytherins in the stands cheered wildly. Flint waved to them, putting on a look of confidence, which was more than he felt for his seeker.

Carla watched as the Ravenclaws emerged from their locker room. They bore confident expressions. The teams stood opposite each other in the center of the field, and Flint and Anderson stared each other down as they shook hands.

"I can feel the tension already!" declared Munden. "Let's hope they kill each other."

"Mr. Munden..."

"Sorry, Professor. But here's hoping."

It wasn't until the game was underway that Carla recognized the opposing seeker as one of the girls she had talked to here last week. She stared in disbelief. She had told that girl all about her necessity in this game. And now it was that very same girl's job to deny her.

Not for the first time, Carla regretted having opened herself up to those girls last week. She felt betrayed.

Why hadn't her opponent said anything? Why had she concealed herself and put on a fake look of sympathy? Carla couldn't believe it.

Carla wasn't usually a trusting person, but for some reason she had allowed herself to open up to those girls last week. She mentally kicked herself for her stupidity.

Her opponent glanced at her, then looked away quickly. Carla desired nothing more in that moment than to beat her, and beat her badly.

"And Barsk has the quaffle, heading for Anderson. He dodges a bludger. And he shoots. Saved!"

A Slytherin beater sent the second bludger shooting at Anderson, and he dodged it easily.

"And there goes Billet, flying towards the Slytherin goals. Flint looks ready. Billet shoots. Saved!"

Down in the stands, James frowned up at the Ravenclaw seeker. She certainly wasn't the same as the boy who had been so inept in Ravenclaw's first match. He had been quite looking forward to facing that boy in the final match.

He recognized the girl as Michaela's best friend, Sarah. She was the sister of Ravenclaw's captain, Sam Anderson. Had Sam just gotten rid of his seeker and put his sister in his place? Was that allowed?

Not far from where James was sitting, Albus and Sean watched from opposite sides of the aisle. The Slytherins shot at Sam again, this time with both the quaffle and a bludger simultaneously. Sam managed to dodge the bludger and block the quaffle. Sean cheered loudly for his brother. Ravenclaw took the quaffle back and managed to score the first goal. Roars went up from the Ravenclaws and most of the Gryffindors in the stands.

High above the action, Sarah chanced a glance at Carla. The other girl was looking around intently, an angry look on her face. When she caught Sarah's gaze, her frown deepened. Sarah looked away guiltily.

Down below, two rows ahead of Albus along the aisle, Michaela looked back and forth between the girls. Though she couldn't see the expression on Sarah's face, she knew what her friend must be feeling. "Come on, Sarah," she muttered, trusting her to make the right decision.

Just then, Carla began speeding towards Sarah. Sarah watched her for a moment with wide eyes, then looked around herself, seeing no glint of gold.

"And there goes Warrington!" shouted Munden.

Sarah turned around and began flying in the same direction that Carla was, looking around anxiously. She still saw no snitch.

Sam watched his sister as she looked around, clearly not seeing where Carla was heading for. He looked around, but saw no sign of the snitch either.

The Slytherin chasers put a goal in behind his back. The Slytherins and some of the Hufflepuffs in the stands cheered.

Carla sped past Sarah, clearly bound for something. Then she quickly went into a nose dive. Sarah went after her, wanting to keep up even if she still didn't see the snitch Carla was chasing.

"There they go!" Munden yelled. "Er... does anyone else see the snitch?"

Carla sped downwards, passing through the fray, dangerously close to Flint just as Billet fired another shot. The quaffle bounced off Sarah's back as she chased Carla in front of the goals, and she gave a yell. Howls of laughter erupted from the Slytherins.

"Well, that's not something you see every game," commented Munden.

Carla pulled up, soaring beneath the confusion of chasers and beaters. A bludger flew by very close to her, but she didn't even seem to notice it. Sarah continued to give chase, still not seeing the snitch. Her back throbbed from accidently blocking Billet's shot.

Carla was now flying towards the other end of the pitch. Sam frowned as the seekers approached. He didn't see any snitch ahead of them. Something was very wrong here.

Carla pulled up higher, dangerously close to the fray. The Slytherin chasers passed around her, and as Sarah chased her she found herself right in the line of fire of one pass. The quaffle struck her once more, this time on the arm.

"The seeker blocks a pass. Ravenclaw regains the quaffle," said a very confused Munden.

Carla went back down beneath everything, this time nearly to the ground. An increasingly-hurting Sarah continued chasing her, wondering if the Slytherin seeker had taken leave of her senses or if Sarah just wasn't able to see the snitch ahead of her. As Carla reached the Ravenclaw goal posts she made a sharp turn between them, then turned upwards along the center post.

Sarah pulled up and found the post directly in front of her. She let out a scream and jerked to the side, pulling her broom off the disastrous course just in time.

In the stands, everyone except for the Slytherins had fallen silent. They watched the seekers with wide eyes, wondering what in the world was going on.

Sam watched in horror as his sister jerked her broom again. He let out a breath as she managed to regain control. Straight below him, the Slytherin seeker was still zooming upwards along Ravenclaw's center post.

The Slytherins had regained the quaffle, and fired another shot behind Sam's turned back. More cheers sounded from the Slytherins in the stands. Carla came closer and closer. Sam waited, wondering what she would do.

Sarah watched as her opponent rushed at her brother. Her back and arm throbbed from the two hits by the quaffle, and she hovered on her broom somewhat unsteadily. Her sympathy for this girl was completely drained. In that moment she wanted nothing more than to see her kicked off the Slytherin team.

Carla pulled away from the post just as Sam braced himself to collide with her. At least he would be able to take her out of the match, even if it took himself out as well. But she flew away from the posts, and he was forced to watch the silver numbers on the back of her green jersey as she flew high above the action once more. She had put his sister "through the works," wearing her down so that she would have no chance of beating her to the snitch. It was a trick that hadn't been used in Hogwarts quidditch in a long time, simply because it was considered to be fundamentally dishonorable.

The Ravenclaw chasers were disgruntled, and Slytherin regained the quaffle. Sam struggled to refocus on the action in front of him, and the Slytherins quickly scored another goal on him.

"30-10 Slytherin," said Munden somewhat breathlessly.

Sarah rose back up to the altitude that Carla was at, sending her a glare that would have withered a tree. Carla glanced at her briefly, then looked away again.

Carla had mixed feelings about it. She was still angry with both herself and the girl. She had told this girl her predicament, not knowing she was her opponent. The fact that Sarah had gone after her so quickly meant that she clearly wanted to beat her, and get her kicked off the Slytherin team. Now Carla was fairly confident that that wouldn't be the case. Though she felt mildly bad about the tactic she had employed, she knew that this girl deserved it.

Michaela glanced back and forth between the two girls. They were clearly very unhappy with each other. She was somewhat unsettled by what Carla had just done. But even from down here she could see the anger on the Slytherin's face, and Michaela herself was frustrated by Sarah's apparent desire to win despite the injustice it would cause for the Slytherin seeker. Michaela couldn't deny to herself that were she in Carla's position, she would have done the same thing.

Slytherin shot again, and this time Sam managed to save it. Ravenclaw regained the quaffle and quickly scored on Flint. The momentum seemed to shift.

Sarah looked around frantically for the snitch, rubbing her aching arm. She wanted to beat this girl so badly.

Down in the stands, Albus glanced at Sean across the aisle. The Ravenclaw boy's face was red with anger.

Sam didn't take his eyes off the quaffle. From the deep frown on his face it looked like he was deeply focused, but he was as angry at the Slytherin seeker as both of his siblings.

As the game progressed, he tried to focus his anger into saving shot after shot, but couldn't quite manage it. Ravenclaw tied the game, but Slytherin still managed to score on him, and the scores rose at fairly even paces.

Sarah felt the pain beginning to wear off. She was glad the snitch hadn't appeared yet, because she knew she needed the time to recover before the final race against her opponent. In her mind, she played over and again the satisfying image of Flint kicking Carla off the Slytherin team.

Carla bit her lip, knowing that by now Sarah would be recovering from her tactic. She had been counting on the snitch having appeared by now. In her mind, the image of Flint glaring at her and removing her from the team played over and again. She shook her head, hopelessly trying to clear it. She needed to find that snitch.

"110-100 in favor of Ravenclaw," announced Munden. By now the fervor in the stands had returned, after having been silenced by the seekers early on. "And there goes Billet again. He shoots. Saved by Flint!"

People noted that Munden wasn't making his usual quips in favor of the Hufflepuff team. They wondered if Professor Zarin was holding him on a tight leash this time, or if he was just shaken by the way the game had begun.

Carla hovered a little closer to Sarah, wondering if she might try a second run. But she couldn't bring herself to, that would simply be too much. She would have to win this match the right way, and retain her honor.

Michaela heard a buzzing. She waved her hand to brush the bug away from her ear, but instead felt something hard and round. She froze. A glint of gold appeared out of the corner of her eye, and then it was right in front of her.

She held still, not knowing what to do. The snitch simply hovered in front of her eyes.

Time seemed to freeze for several seconds, and images of both Sarah and Carla appeared before her eyes. Then two scenes played out in her mind, one of Carla causing Sarah to be hit by the quaffle twice and nearly crash into the goal post, and the other of Flint kicking Carla off the team.

She felt more sympathy for Carla.

"Sarah!" a boy called out. The spell was broken, as Michaela spun around to see that it was Sean who had called out from two rows behind her across the aisle, and was pointing at her. Michaela looked up to see her friend staring at her, seeing only the snitch. At the far end of the field, Carla watched with dismay as her opponent dove down towards her own bleachers, and took off after her. This would be a very difficult gap to close.

The snitch rose and flew over the Ravenclaws in the stands. A couple of hands reached up to try to grab it. Sarah flew over their heads, and they cheered loudly for her.

The snitch flew back out over the field, and Carla took advantage of the fortunate turn to close the gap between herself and her opponent.

Sarah chased the snitch right through the middle of the fray, catching her brother's attention as she passed by the quaffle. His eyes widened and began to follow her.

Carla flew above, avoiding getting hit by bludgers or quaffle. A bludger flew at Sarah, but at that moment the snitch turned, and as Sarah turned to follow it, the bludger flew by harmlessly.

The Slytherins put in another goal while Sam wasn't paying attention.

As the snitch passed once again beyond the chaos, Carla dove after it, nearly catching up to Sarah. The snitch gave a sudden turn and passed over the girls' heads, heading straight up. Carla and Sarah's brooms bounced off each other as they pulled up simultaneously, and Sarah was thrown a little off course, allowing Carla to close the rest of the gap.

Side by side, they soared upwards.

Sam's anxiety rose with the girls. "Come on Sarah, come on Sarah." He didn't even spare a glance as the Slytherin chasers scored another goal behind his back.

The two girls were neck-and-neck. Sam bit his lip. The snitch gave a lurch towards Carla's side, and Sam lurched with it. Then the snitch turned towards Sarah's side.

The chasers kept going, only half-aware that both of the captains had abandoned their keeper duties to watch the seekers. Munden wasn't paying attention to the goals either, and only the scoring tabs gave any idea of who was scoring more goals.

"Come on Sarah," Sam muttered. On and on the seekers went, following each of the snitch's turns. Neither ever managed to be gaining any lead on the other. "Come on, Sarah."

Michaela felt a sense of agonizing suspense as she watched the race. It seemed to go on forever.

James watched anxiously. His fellow seekers seemed to be gaining speed as they pushed off each other. He had already beaten the Slytherin seeker once, but she seemed much better now than she had in that first match. And Sam Anderson's sister would certainly prove tough competition for him during the final match in May.

The snitch began to climb again, and Carla and Sarah pulled up once more. They climbed faster than ever, still pushing off of each other for more speed.

Michaela's gaze rose with them. She held her breath, as once more the image of Flint kicking Carla off the team played out in her mind.

Suddenly the snitch turned back downwards, passing right in front of Carla. She reacted immediately, reaching out and grabbing it.

Far below, none of the spectators in the stands could actually see what had happened. The seekers stopped climbing, and simply hovered for several seconds.

Carla and Sarah stared at each other, Carla holding tightly onto the snitch. Sarah frowned at her opponent. Carla responded simply with a glare. Then she turned downwards.

Silence had fallen down below. When people saw Carla descend, holding the snitch in her hand, roars broke out from the Slytherins.

"Warrington's got the snitch!" shouted Munden. "Slytherin wins!"

Michaela let out her held breath. She looked at Flint, who had a small smile on his sinister face as he watched his seeker.

Sam watched the girl in dismay. He wasn't terribly surprised that his sister had lost, what with the way Carla had abused her early on and then the skill she had shown in the final race. He shook his head angrily.

Sean turned and left the bleachers. Albus watched him go, then glanced at Rose uncertainly. She pushed him out to follow him.

The Slytherins surrounded Carla. She glanced at Flint, who nodded at her. "Well done," he said gruffly, then grabbed her arm and roughly pulled it upwards alongside his. Together their fists pumped through the air, along with the five others.

On the ground, Sam watched as his sister descended. She had an angry look on her face. He shared in her anger, hating the Slytherin girl.

Sarah touched the ground in front of him. Not looking at him, she stepped around him into the locker room.

Outside, Albus caught up with Sean, followed by Rose and Allison. "Hey!" he called out. The Ravenclaw turned to him. "You alright?"

Sean grimaced and shook his head. "No." He started walking towards the Ravenclaw locker room, and Albus walked with him. When Sean went inside, Albus hesitated, not knowing whether to follow him or not.

Sarah watched as her little brother entered the room, followed hesitantly by another boy she did not recognize, who was wearing a Gryffindor tie.

Sean approached his siblings, and they stood together for a while. Albus couldn't hear what was said. He simply stood there awkwardly amidst the Ravenclaws. He felt that he had to get out of there, and quickly turned and left the room, not seeing Sean turn towards him just as he left.

Outside, he ran straight in to someone, and fell back onto the ground. Looking up, he saw Michaela standing above him. She held out a hand, and he took it, allowing her to pull him back up until he was standing again.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"Er... yeah," Albus replied awkwardly, brushing off his robes. He looked up at her face. She wore a small smile, and for the first time he noticed how pretty she was. No wonder James liked her.

An awkward moment passed. "Er... thanks," said Albus quickly, hurrying away. Michaela watched her rival's brother go with some amusement.

Then she turned back to the Ravenclaw locker room. She couldn't deny that she was happy Carla had won. Carla deserved to play on the Slytherin team just as much as Sarah deserved to play for Ravenclaw. But at the same time, she knew this was a very bad start to relations between the two girls, and of course it wouldn't help relations between Ravenclaw and Slytherin at all.

Marcus and Gary approached her, and she glanced at each of them briefly. Their Gryffindor and Hufflepuff badges glinted in the sunlight.

Since Michaela had met Carla, a plan had been forming in her mind. She had a vision of a friendship that spanned across the houses, which other students could draw on as an example. Besides, she liked the idea of becoming friends with Carla. She recognized her as a nice girl put in a tough position, simply in need of some support. But she knew that Sarah would vehemently disagree with her on that.

Another rivalry was beginning, and this time Michaela felt she was in the middle of it, rather than on one side. It would be very difficult to pull the Ravenclaw and the Slytherin together into her design, the way things had begun between them. But she would try.


	20. The Professor's Request

**A/N: Hey all! It's been a while, and I'm really sorry. It looks like I'm in for a busy year. But I'll get another chapter to you all before the end of the weekend, I promise!**

**Enjoy! Also, the first person to catch the tribute to Anchorman in this chapter and mention it in a review gets fifteen points to the house of their choice 3 chapters from now.**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 20: The Professor's Request**

James's hand froze over the parchment, quill in the air. He still couldn't tell his father that he had lost the invisibility cloak.

"Gotta spill the bad news some time, mate," muttered Daryl.

"Yeah," James replied sullenly. He stared at the parchment for a few more seconds, then put down the quill and rolled it back up. "But not right now."

"De ja vu," muttered Daryl, having witnessed James do this three times already.

James deposited the rolled-up parchment on his bed and strode steadily out of the dormitory. Most of the Gryffindors had already gone down to the Great Hall for breakfast.

"Morning, Jamie."

James instinctively frowned at the voice, and didn't look up quite enough to meet her eyes. "Good morning, Michaela," he replied, doing his best to imitate the false friendliness in her voice.

"James!"

It was Pearl, coming towards him with a wide smile on her face. James glanced at her, then back at Michaela. An idea formed.

Michaela frowned as James shifted his gaze from her to Pearl and gave the other girl a wide smile. Pearl reached out towards him, and he took her hand. He spoke softly to her, and they left the Common Room together.

Michaela continued frowning at the portrait hole for a moment, then looked up at where Daryl was still standing. He gave her a funny look, then hurried after the other two.

_James and Pearl?_ Michaela couldn't believe it. Could James really choose to go out with that... that... brainless barbie doll?

Shaking the notion from her mind, she left the Common Room. She met Sarah at the top of the Marble Staircase.

"Good morning," said Sarah brightly.

"Morning," Michaela replied. Sarah didn't have her attention for very long, for no sooner had she arrived then she saw Carla appear as well. She ran to catch up with the Slytherin as she entered the Great Hall. "Hey!"

Carla turned to her and frowned, seeing Sarah come up beside her. "Hi," she said with more than a little apparent suspicion.

Michaela hesitated. She hadn't prepared herself for the look Carla was giving her and Sarah. She glanced sideways at Sarah, who was giving Carla a perhaps even less pleasant look. She wished the Ravenclaw hadn't run after her.

"Um... do you want to sit with us?" Michaela's voice went awkwardly high as she asked this.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Sarah turn and stare at her. Carla's eyebrows shot up, and she glanced between the Gryffindor and the Ravenclaw. "Is this a joke?"

"Yes," Sarah interjected sharply, shoving Michaela ahead of her into the Great Hall, all the way to the side where the Gryffindors sat at their table, well away from the Slytherins.

Carla watched the pair go, frowning. Michaela's offer had sounded genuine, but the Ravenclaw seeker was clearly not in agreement with her friend. Carla shook her head, bewildered at the fact that the Ravenclaw still couldn't understand.

"Are you mad?" Sarah demanded as she and Michaela walked alongside the Gryffindor table.

"No," replied Michaela. "But you're mad at her."

"I'm..." Sarah paused, then rounded on her friend. "What? Don't play that game with me!"

"Alright there, girls?" asked Shane from his seat, which they had been about to pass. Across from him, James smirked up at Michaela from where he was seated next to Pearl.

Michaela looked at him for a moment, then smirked back. "What's this, Jamie? Have you got yourself a girlfriend?"

Before James could reply, Pearl stood up next to him. "Yes, he does. Keep your nose out of it."

Michaela moved her hand a little towards the wand pocket of her robes. Pearl saw the movement and flinched, both hands coming up to her hair. Michaela laughed. "How cute. I'm sure James will be very happy with you."

James's face fell a little, and the change greatly pleased Michaela.

"Come on, Michaela," muttered Sarah, tugging gently on her arm. As much as she supported Michaela, she took no pleasure in watching her try to get back at James. It was moments like these when she just couldn't understand her friend, and why she just couldn't forget about what had happened.

"Yeah, go on, Black," muttered Shane.

Michaela winked at him, then walked on with Sarah. Shane looked quite uncomfortable as she walked past, clearly regretting having spoken to them. The poor guy had thought he might have an advantage when he saw them arguing.

Marcus sat a few seats away from Shane, a group of fourth-years between them, with space on the other side of him. Michaela sat down next to her brother, and Sarah sat on the other side of her, earning weird looks from the surrounding Gryffindors.

"You're not sitting with Gary today?" Michaela asked.

"He's still a little weird about a Gryffindor sitting at the Hufflepuff table," Marcus replied. "Doesn't like when I do it so often."

Michaela rolled her eyes. Even after the past few months, Gary was still uneasy about crossing the boundaries between the houses.

"You're not sitting at Ravenclaw today?" Marcus asked.

Michaela glanced sideways at Sarah. "We wound up over here."

Marcus glanced over to where James and Pearl sat on the other side of the table a few seats down. From the other side of Pearl, Laura gave the twins a cold look.

"I know, I'm just as welcome here as always," noted Michaela with a smile of indifference.

The dark-haired older girl that Sarah now sat across from looked at Marcus. "Marcus, who are your friends?"

"Dominique, this is my sister Michaela, and her friend Sarah." Dominique stared for a moment at Sarah with her Ravenclaw robes.

"I remember you," piped in the blonde girl who sat on the far side of Dominique, looking at Michaela. "You're the girl who kissed our cousin."

Michaela's mouth fell open. These were James's cousins? How many cousins did he have in this house?

"Ah! I remember!" exclaimed Dominique. " And then you confronted him in the middle of the common room, after turning the other girl's hair pink."

Michaela couldn't resist smiling with pride. "Yep."

"I'm Dominique, and this is Molly. We like pranking our cousin as well."

Michaela's eyebrows shot up. "Really?"

Molly glanced at Dominique. "Well, maybe not quite so seriously."

"Right. There's no need to be quite so mean about it."

Michaela shut her mouth before saying something. If only they knew.

Dominique glanced farther down the table. "Victoire!"

Michaela had already known that the Head Girl was also James's cousin. When she looked over, Dominique said something in French, which Michaela didn't understand. The Head Girl looked at Michaela and smiled.

Sitting near Victoire, Rose understood some of what was said, having learned some French from her mother during a trip to France. "That won't be good for James."

Albus glanced up from his plate. "Huh?"

"It sounds like your brother's rival just met the yin-yang."

Albus stared at her in confusion for a moment, then his eyes widened.

Across the table from them, Robert was scrambling to finish his Potions essay. When he was done, he shouted victoriously, raising his arms. When he brought his arms down, however, he knocked into his goblet of pumpkin juice.

"Immobulus!" Albus shouted. The goblet teetered, seeming to move in slow motion. Victoire saw what was happening and pulled out her wand. The goblet froze, just before the juice could spill out onto the parchment.

"Thank you!" exclaimed Robert, staring from the goblet to the Head Girl in amazement. He began, slowly and carefully, to pull the parchment out from under the slanted goblet.

Just then the owls flew in over head, and one of them dropped a heavy package that flattened the goblet. The pumpkin juice spread across Robert's parchment, mingling with the not-yet-dried ink. The poor boy cried out in dismay.

Albus gave him a sympathetic look. Rose, meanwhile, looked at the package. "It's for you, Albus."

Albus frowned at the package that had fallen in front of Robert. He picked it up and placed it in front of himself. Sure enough, his name was on it, the paper now soaked through with pumpkin juice.

"I can't believe this!" exclaimed Robert.

Albus pulled apart the wet paper around the box and looked inside. He pulled out the contents.

"What is that?" Robert asked, staring at the bundle that Albus was now holding.

"It's the cloak!" said Albus, careful to keep his voice down.

"What cloak?"

"James's cloak." He glanced sideways at Rose.

Robert frowned at the strange material. "Why would your brother wear a cloak like that?"

Albus buried his hand in the material, watching it disappear. He glanced up at Robert, but the other boy couldn't see what he was doing.

"Who sent it to you?" asked Rose.

Albus looked back into the box. "There's no note."

Rose frowned.

Just then Victoire let out a small scream of delight. Albus glanced up at her. She was staring at a letter in her hand.

"What is it, Victoire?" Rose asked her cousin.

"Teddy's coming! He's coming here!" There was a huge smile on her face, and Albus and Rose both smiled with her.

"When?" Albus asked.

"Next month!"

Dominique appeared behind her, coming over to see what the fuss was about. "That's fantastic, Sis." She leaned down, placing her hand on her sister's shoulder, and said something softly in French.

Rose couldn't understand what was said, but Victoire's face reddened quite a bit, and she gently slapped Dominique's hand.

"How long will he be here for?" Dominique asked in English, so quietly that Albus and Rose could barely hear.

"He didn't say," Victoire answered, maintaining a level gaze on her sister.

"Interesting," said the dark-haired girl.

Victoire rolled her eyes and gave her sister a gentle shove. "Go away."

Dominique said something else in French, then stood up straight and returned to her seat next to Molly. Victoire stared after her with a smile, then shook her head and turned back to the letter.

Albus and Rose shared a look, both excited to see Teddy. At a gasp from Robert they looked at him, to find him staring in horror at Albus's arm.

The cloak had unraveled from its bundle and slipped down Albus's arm, causing it to disappear. Albus saw what had happened and quickly hid the cloak beneath the table.

"What the..." Robert exclaimed.

"Mr. Everett!" The sharp voice came from behind Albus, and he turned around to see Professor Markan frowning down at the soaked piece of parchment that lay in front of Robert. "Is that supposed to be a Potions essay?"

"Er...yes, Professor," Robert replied somberly, quickly forgetting about the bizarre cloak as he stared up at the professor's sharp gaze.

"I don't think Professor Zarin asked for an essay on pumpkin juice," said the professor with a delicate tone. Rose couldn't restrain herself and broke into a fit of giggles behind her hand, which made it more difficult for Albus to restrain his own laughter.

Robert stuttered, at a complete loss for what to say.

"I think, Mr. Everett, that from now on you will find it more wise to complete your homework before you come down to the Great Hall, which means starting it early enough that you won't have to finish it in the midst of your breakfast."

"Yes, Professor."

With that, the professor continued on his course towards the front entrance of the hall. Once he had passed, Albus and Rose broke out into open laughter. "An essay on pumpkin juice," repeated Rose. "Fantastic."

Robert glared at them. "Very funny."

* * *

><p>Albus forgot about the professor's quip until he entered the Muggle Studies classroom that afternoon. As soon as he saw the professor he remembered and started laughing again.<p>

"Is something funny, Mr. Potter?" the professor asked in a mild tone.

Albus fought to restrain himself and shook his head. Entering behind him, Robert glared between the two. He had lost ten points for Gryffindor for his essay. Fortunately, Professor Zarin took even more points away from Slytherin when his nephew made fun of Robert for his essay. That had shut Alexander up quickly, and he had resorted to his usual activity of glaring at his uncle.

Professor Markan chose today to talk about the old mythology of the Muggles of Germany, which led to him talking for a while about how the Germans had thought of elves as evil.

"Elves again. Now there's a surprise," muttered Robert bitterly.

A German writer named Goethe wrote a poem about the Erlenkoenig, the Elf King, which appeared to a boy in his imagination and killed him in his father's arms, without the father ever being able to understand what was happening.

Franky raised his hand. "Did that actually happen, Professor?"

"It is possible," the professor replied. "Goethe was a Muggle, but it is possible that he heard the story from someone and thought it was a made-up fantasy."

"But you always say that elves aren't evil!" Becky blurted.

"And there isn't an Elf King, is there?" added Leanna.

"Elves are not evil," replied the professor. "However, there are many stories in Elven lore about the ancient Elf clans."

Suddenly something clicked in Rose's mind. She remembered the amulet that her mother usually wore tucked under her shirt. She had seen it once and asked about the runes.

She had a strong feeling she had just discovered something important about the Sylvarum.

"Some Elf legends talk about an ancient clan that performed dark magic," Professor Markan went on. "But they were defeated by another clan, the most powerful one that ever existed, and supposedly wiped out."

"The Sylvar," Rose whispered. Her mother had said that they were the most powerful elves that had ever lived. At least they weren't the evil ones.

Professor Markan glanced at Rose for a moment, clearly having heard her, then looked at Leanna. "As for your question, Miss Filman, some of the ancient clans did have kings, but it is unknown if any of those still exist."

Rose glanced over at Albus.

"Miss Weasley," said Professor Markan. Rose shifted her gaze to him from her cousin, feeling guilty. "Please tell me about the elves that appear in the plays of the Muggle playwright William Shakespeare."

This took more than a moment of thought on Rose's part, but she had read what she was supposed to, and she launched into a response.

By the time class ended, Rose was positively itching to talk to Albus and Allison about what she thought she had discovered. She would get her chance, but not in the way she expected.

"Miss Weasley," called out the professor as the students began to file out of the classroom, "Mr. Potter and Miss Levin, please remain."

The three glanced at each other uneasily.

They followed the professor into his office. Albus took a moment to look around. The room looked like an old-fashioned study. The smell of rich mahogany permeated the air. A bookcase crammed with leather-bound books covered the entire back wall. The mantle of the fireplace was undecorated, while a pair of cupboards and a large cabinet stood along the wall beside it. What looked like a very old portrait of a witch hung on the wall above the fireplace.

The Professor sat down in a very comfortable-looking chair behind his large desk. He eyed each of the three first-years in turn. Then, with a wave of his wand, three small chairs appeared in front of the desk.

"Please sit," he said in a mild voice. The students obeyed immediately, and as soon as they sat down, each of the chairs rose up so that they were at eye-level with the professor.

Seconds passed. Clutching tightly to the arms of their floating chairs, the students watched the professor apprehensively.

Finally he spoke. "You three have been doing some interesting research lately." He took a moment to observe their reactions of surprise and fear. "Miss Weasley, what have you learned about the Sylvarum so far?"

Rose was caught off guard, being put on the spot so quickly. "Not very much, Professor. But I have a feeling it is related to the Sylvar, the most powerful race of elves that ever lived."

The Professor raised his eyebrows. "A feeling?"

"Yes, Sir. I mean besides the fact that the words are similar, it just feels right somehow."

The Professor stared at her for a moment. "I'd already known that you have your mother's taste for knowledge. But perhaps you have your father's tendency towards impulsive conclusions as well. An interesting combination."

Rose reddened slightly, giving a sheepish smile.

The Professor turned his attention to Albus. "Mr. Potter, a few weeks ago you and your brother decided to go on a midnight adventure into the Forbidden Forest."

Rose and Allison turned in unison to stare at Albus, eyes wide. The boy stared at the professor fearfully, wondering how he could have known.

"You left something behind."

Just then, the large cabinet against the wall opened. The students swung around to see a man appear out of it. "Sorry I'm late, Professor." Albus recognized Edmond, the vampire, in an instant. Edmond met the boy's gaze and nodded. "It is good to finally be able to see you, young Mr. Potter."

Rose glanced back and forth between the man and Albus, bewildered. Allison was staring at the cabinet from which the man had just appeared in shock. She had never before heard of a vanishing cabinet, much less seen one.

"Welcome, Edmond," said the professor. "You're actually just in time. I want to thank you again for returning the cloak to the boy."

Albus's eyes widened. He had assumed that it had been Hagrid who had sent him back the cloak, finding it in the forest after the boys had disappeared with Kreacher.

The vampire nodded. "It's nothing, Professor. I just hope these children will be more careful next time they decide to venture into the forest."

The Professor nodded. "That is why I would like you to accompany them next time, rather than Professor Hagrid."

All four looked at him in surprise. Albus hadn't realized there was supposed to be a next time. The Forbidden Forest had proven itself, and Albus had no desire to venture again into such danger so soon.

"Now that you have the cloak back, Mr. Potter, I would like you to proceed with your investigations concerning the house-elves. This time Edmond will accompany you, and I trust your friends will as well." He glanced at Rose and Allison in turn. They each stared back at him in shock.

Albus didn't know what to say.

"I recommend that from now on you travel in the Forbidden Forest during the day, rather than at night. You will find the experience much less frightening, though perhaps no less dangerous. For this venture I recommend the day of the next quidditch match, when the rest of the school will be otherwise occupied."

Albus's eyebrows shot up. "The next quidditch match is Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff. That means James won't be able to come."

The Professor nodded understandingly. "You will have to inform your brother of your discoveries at a later time, if he is not too preoccupied with other matters." Instantly Albus thought of Michaela, and James's constant preoccupation with her. "Now then, if this matter is decided, you are all dismissed." The chairs floated gently back down to the floor, but the three students glanced at each other nervously, not moving. Finally Albus rose and thanked the professor, then turned and departed. Rose and Allison followed suit.


	21. Into the Forest Again

**A/N: Hey all! Here's another, as promised. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 21: Into the Forest Again**

"Where's Allison?"

Rose glanced at her cousin. He had a very serious, business-like expression on his face. "She's still in the dorm. She'll be down soon."

Already most of the Gryffindors had left to go down to the quidditch pitch. Once they were gone, Albus, Rose and Allison would quickly go to the edge of the Forbidden Forest, where they would meet Edmond.

"Come on, Dom, let's get going!" Daryl passed close by Albus and Rose, followed by Dom. "Hey, Laura, wait up!"

Laura, flanked by Pearl and Selina, paused and turned to the boys, crossing her arms. "Hurry up. The stands will be almost full by the time we get there." Her eyes narrowed when she saw Marcus approach behind Daryl and Dom.

Daryl caught her look and glanced uneasily at Marcus behind him.

"Black, I thought you'd be cheering on your Hufflepuff friend today," said Selina in a none-too-friendly tone.

Marcus crossed his arms and gave her the same look that Laura was giving him. "Who says I won't be. But I'm still going down to the pitch from here, aren't I. I live in this house."

Laura frowned, but before she could speak, Pearl cut her off with a roll of her eyes. "Alright, enough. Let's just go down to the pitch, shall we? I want to watch James play."

All the five others turned to look at her. Marcus knew all-too-well his sister's feelings about Pearl being James's girlfriend.

"Alright, let's go," said Daryl quickly, before the tension boiled over some more.

Albus and Rose watched as they left through the portrait hole. They were now the only two in the Common Room.

Albus turned and looked towards the stairs up to the girls' dormitories. He was about to repeat his question when Allison appeared, her expression full of apprehension.

"Finally. Let's go!" said Albus, turning immediately to leave.

Allison hesitated, glancing warily towards the portrait hole.

Rose approached her. "It'll be okay," she said softly. Allison nodded. Gathering her confidence, she began walking steadily towards the portrait hole. Albus climbed out of it, and she followed. Rose took a moment, glancing quickly towards the light coming through the nearest window, before following.

* * *

><p>Gary clutched his broom tightly. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Steven watching him. Refusing to meet his gaze, he kept himself facing straight forward.<p>

Noise erupted from the Hufflepuffs in the stands as the team took the field. At the far end, the Gryffindors appeared, clothed in scarlet and wearing confident expressions. It had been a long time since Hufflepuff had beaten Gryffindor in a match.

The teams stood opposite each other in the center of the field. Gary glanced at each of the three Gryffindor chasers in turn. He knew he was better than he had been back in November. Still, he wondered if he would collapse again under the pressure he felt on his shoulders.

He cast a quick glance sideways at Sandra, and saw her return the glance with a nod. Then she refocused her gaze on her opponent, James Potter.

James looked at each of the Hufflepuffs in turn. None of them looked very confident.

"Look at those Hufflepuffs. They look sharp as thestral beaks," declared Munden over the loudspeaker. James doubted he had ever seen a thestral. Not that James had either.

Hawkeye threw up the quaffle, and the players kicked off. James and Sandra flew high above the rest, beginning their vigilant search for the snitch.

* * *

><p>"Good day to you all," said Edmond, appearing suddenly from behind a tree. Allison gave a jump as soon as she saw him, and Rose automatically grabbed her arm.<p>

"Good day, Edmond," said Albus bravely. He had been bracing himself for greeting the vampire during the whole walk across the grounds, so that he would be prepared and wouldn't let himself get caught looking afraid in front of the girls.

"Do you have the cloak, Mr. Potter?"

Albus nodded, withdrawing the translucent bundle from within his robes. The girls pressed close to him as he threw it around them and himself. He was immediately aware of their nearness quite keenly, though they were all small enough that they could fit together under the cloak without a problem.

"Come," said Edmond, leading the way into the forest. The trio entered, and it quickly grew darker as they walked among the trees. Leaves crunched underfoot. The days were growing warmer, and the snow was melting, though patches still covered much of the ground in the shadowy woods.

An unidentifiable sound came out of the distance, and Albus could feel Allison tense up behind him. He frowned, an expression invisible to anyone. It had been obvious from before they had started that she was not prepared for an adventure like this.

Deeper and deeper into the forest they walked. Allison grew more acclimated to the strange shadows and sounds, though she still looked around sharply each time a new sound was emitted. Rose also was sounding more relaxed, though her fear had been far less overwhelming from the beginning. She matched Albus's carefully-maintained confident stride.

Suddenly Edmond froze, causing the trio under the cloak to very nearly crash into his back. They looked up at him, wondering why he had stopped.

Seconds passed. He didn't move. Then they heard it.

A storm of hooves trampled the ground. The stampede quickly approached.

They appeared first as shadows between the trees. Then the contours of the half-human, half-horse bodies could be seen. Each of the centaurs was carrying a loaded bow.

Allison screamed. Rose clutched tightly onto Albus's arm. Edmond remained standing stock-still beside them. The centaurs charged closer and closer.

* * *

><p>"Another goal for Hufflepuff!" Munden yelled. The Hufflepuffs roared victoriously. "They lead 50-0!"<p>

James shook his head, staring at the Hufflepuff keeper. The owl-boy still had not let the quaffle past him. He seemed a completely different player from the one who had played in Hufflepuff's first match against Ravenclaw.

He knew this game was on his shoulders. He looked around earnestly for the snitch, but it was nowhere to be seen.

"Gryffindor holds the quaffle. Holdwin rushes forward. A pass! A pass back! Come on, steal it, Steven!"

"Mr. Munden..."

But Munden was so excited that he completely ignored the professor's reprimand. "Holdwin shoots... Another save by Boulder!"

The Hufflepuffs roared again. Gary tossed the quaffle confidently to Steven, then gave a small wave to the Hufflepuffs in the stands below.

Suddenly Holdwin rushed forward, catching Steven off-guard. Steven quickly tried to pass the quaffle away, but Holdwin intercepted it as soon as it left his hands. The Gryffindor captain immediately fired at the hoop farthest away from Gary. Unprepared, the methodical keeper gave a desperate dive to the block the shot, but failed.

"Hey! What? That's a foul!" shouted Munden, but Hawkeye paid him no heed. The Hufflepuffs fell silent as cheers went up from the Gryffindors.

"Clever play," commented Sarah. Michaela turned and glanced at her brother, who was sitting behind them. This time the twins were both sitting on the Ravenclaw side of the aisle, and supporting Hufflepuff against their own house, for Gary. Most of the surrounding Ravenclaws were also cheering for Hufflepuff, since a Gryffindor loss would bring the race for the Quidditch Cup into a four-way tie once more, rather than Gryffindor gaining an outright lead ahead of the other three houses. Ravenclaw was in danger of losing the Cup for the first time in five years.

The Gryffindors stole the quaffle again and quickly rushed forward. They fired once more, and scored again on the flustered Gary.

"50-20," muttered Munden bitterly, the quiet announcement nearly drowned out by the roars from the Gryffindors.

* * *

><p>The centaurs surrounded the vampire. Edmond had known it would be fruitless for the children to try to outrun the beasts, and he hadn't wanted their footsteps to reveal their presence.<p>

Nearly fifty bows were now aimed squarely at him, and he knew that the centaurs had no idea that the children were there.

Under the cloak, Albus did his best to keep his breath as steady and quiet as possible. He felt Allison trembling behind him. Rose placed a hand on the other girl's arm, while with her other hand she squeezed Albus's tightly.

"Why don't you run, vampire?" growled the nearest centaur, whose body was mostly covered in black hair.

Edmond remained silent, matching the centaur's glare.

The centaur waited a few seconds for a response, then angrily reared up. "This forest is ours! You came in here and fed on one of our own. Do you expect us to let you live?"

After a moment, Edmond responded calmly. "Yes."

The calmness of the response caught the centaurs off-guard. Several of them lowered their bows in confusion. "And why would we do that?" demanded the black centaur.

"You know that I am a friend of Professor Markan."

The black centaur snorted and reared up again. "Professor Markan promised to help us long ago. But he has no power to do that."

Edmond looked up at the patches of sky that could be seen between the branches overhead. "Your kind read the stars and the planets, and can divine the future. You know that what you say is not true."

The centaur pulled back his bowstring, aiming at the vampire. "Killing you will not affect our future."

A long second passed, during which the centaur and the vampire merely glared at each other.

The centaur's bow arm tensed, preparing for the release of the arrow.

"And what of Miss Weasley?"

The centaur's expression changed suddenly, and his arm jerked mid-release. Edmond didn't even flinch as the arrow flew over his shoulder, missing by no more than a few centimeters.

The arrow landed at the hooves of a handsome-looking centaur, who had been the first to lower his bow and had kept it lowered. He now stepped forward, seemingly-unintentionally snapping the arrow beneath a hoof. "Miss Weasley? What has she to bare in this?"

"That's Firenze!" whispered Rose in Albus's ear. There was a picture of him with her parents and some others in her home. He was famous for his kindness towards humans during the Second War.

Firenze looked straight at the invisible trio, as if he had heard his name spoken.

"Everything," said Edmond quickly, his voice losing some of its calmness. Firenze didn't even pay him a glance.

Under the cloak, Allison clutched both Albus and Rose tightly, standing as still as she could. Albus glanced sideways at his cousin.

"Think of everything Hermione Weasley has done for the centaurs," insisted Edmond.

"Nothing that is of any consequence here!" shouted the black centaur. "Your death will change nothing."

"Silence, Bane!" roared Firenze. He stepped in the direction of the children.

Edmond stood stock-still, watching the centaur's progress.

Albus felt Allison's hand tighten like a vice on his arm. Then Rose moved. Albus watched in horror as she stepped out from under the cloak.

At once all the centaurs except for Firenze reared up.

"Firenze," said Rose, her voice oddly low and mature-sounding, "you once helped my parents fight in the war against Voldemort."

"What is this?" demanded the black centaur, Bane. The other centaurs were exchanging glances and low words.

"I remember," said Firenze. "You should not be here, Rose Weasley."

Rose gestured towards the vampire. "Edmond is helping us. We need him."

"Ha!" interjected Bane. "Even a human as young as you should know not to trust a vampire."

"Silence, Bane," Firenze repeated. He took another step towards Rose. "You speak with the words 'us' and 'we.' Who else is under that cloak?"

Rose's eyes widened. She hadn't realized that error.

Watching Rose, Albus could no longer resist taking action himself. On impulse he cast the cloak aside, causing a shriek of terror from Allison behind him.

Again several of the centaurs reared up. "Harry Potter's son!" several more of them exclaimed.

Firenze glanced at each of the children in turn. "What are you three children doing in this forest? It is forbidden for you to come here."

"Professor Markan sent us," stated Albus in a bold tone.

"For what purpose?" Bane demanded.

"To investigate the house-elves."

Several of the centaurs scoffed at this. "There are no house-elves here," said Bane.

"I have seen them in here before," Albus replied, not backing down beneath the black centaur's glare.

"This is centaur territory!" Bane roared. "Firenze, take these children out of here. It is time to deal with this vampire."

Firenze stepped towards Rose and lifted her up, putting her on his back. When he moved on to Albus, the boy struggled, but Firenze was far stronger, and placed him behind his cousin. He then turned to the third child, whom he didn't recognize, unsure that he could fit her on safely with the other two. The little girl stood stock-still, staring up at him anxiously.

"What is your name?" he asked in the gentlest voice he could manage.

"Allison," she replied. Her voice was very quiet.

Firenze looked towards a red-haired centaur nearby. "Ronan, come carry young Allison here for me."

The red-haired centaur nodded and stepped forward. Allison immediately backed away from him, unwittingly backing right into the black centaur.

Bane let out a grunt and reared up above her. Allison let out a scream and ducked. In that moment Edmond charged forward and caught Bane's front hoof, pushing it away from the girl.

Knocked off-balance, the black centaur went careening backwards. Edmond picked up the girl and ran, and the other centaurs reared and gave chase.

Mindful of the children on his back, Firenze backed out of the fray safely. "Allison!" Rose yelled. Caught off-guard by the sudden turn of events, Ronan glanced uncertainly back at Firenze, then joined the others in pursuit of the vampire.

Firenze glanced back at the children. "Hold on tightly!" He then set off after the herd, hoping that they didn't hurt the third child in their anger at the vampire.

* * *

><p>Gary had regained control, and once again Hufflepuff was building its lead. Every once in a while he would glance towards the aisle between the Ravenclaws and Gryffindors in the stands, where his friends were watching him proudly.<p>

James's anxiety increased as he looked around for the snitch, which still hadn't yet appeared. Across the field, the Hufflepuff seeker was still looking around as well, and he watched each of her movements carefully.

Steven Smith scored again, making the score 110-30. At that exact moment the Hufflepuff seeker went into a sudden dive, and James took off after her.

* * *

><p>Edmond could run faster than any human could, even during the daytime, when his magic was weaker. But the girl in his arms was slowing him down, and he knew the centaurs would overtake him eventually. He could hear the black centaur yelling from the midst of the herd, "Kill him! Kill the vampire!"<p>

Firenze had caught up with his companions, but was unable to get ahead of them and rescue the girl. He feared the worst from his herd's wrath.

Suddenly there was a flash of light from the forest ahead of them. A sphere of light hovered in front of the vampire, right in his path. The vampire ran right into the midst of it

Then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, the light was gone. The vampire and the girl were gone too.

* * *

><p>James had nearly caught up to the Hufflepuff seeker by the time he saw the snitch. When it changed direction, he reacted first, and in a flash he was ahead in the race.<p>

"Come on, Sandra!" shouted Munden over the loudspeaker.

A bludger came flying at James's head, but he ducked it, continuing after the snitch.

Smith, Anderson and Flint all watched in dismay as Potter made a final lunge, catching the snitch and putting Gryffindor alone in the lead for the Quidditch Cup. Holdwin let out a whoop.

* * *

><p>Allison fell out of the vampire's arms, falling through the white light that surrounded them. When she hit the ground, the light dissipated. Getting to her feet, she looked up, and immediately took a step backwards.<p>

Standing before her was the largest elf she had ever seen, not that she had seen that many. It was far larger than any of the house-elves that had appeared in Professor Markan's classroom on Halloween, and indeed it was larger than she was. It wore a long forest-green cloak, pinned together at the front by a large golden star engraved with runes.

When Allison took in the sight that was behind the large elf, she was even more shocked, and filled with awe.


	22. Nearer and Farther

**A/N: Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 22: Nearer and Farther**

Steven Smith was rather frustrated. Actually he was quite angry. And this time he didn't have anyone in particular to be angry at. Sandra had done her best, but she had gotten unlucky with that last turn of the snitch. Everyone knew that Hufflepuff had been the better team in that match.

And Gary had... been very surprising. Steven looked at the owl-boy, who had finished changing and was now sitting silently on the bench, looking rather uncomfortable as he awaited the captain's final words. At first Steven had thought nothing of him, especially after that first disaster against Ravenclaw. He had been the only student from Hufflepuff to try out for keeper, and had gained the position by default, much to Steven's chagrin. Then all of a sudden today he had been... like a completely different player.

But it was all for naught. Hufflepuff had still lost, by a simple stroke of bad luck. Such had been the team's luck for nearly a decade now.

By now the entire rest of the team was watching him, waiting for him to say something. He looked at each of them in turn, beginning with Sandra and ending with Gary. Finally he spoke, in an uncharacteristically quiet voice. "Good game, everyone. We played well today."

The others glanced at each other in surprise, all except for Sandra. She continued to watch him with a mild expression.

"Let's head back to the castle," said Steven.

Gary watched as the captain led the way out of the locker room, as surprised as the rest. Since when was Steven so... humble?

After several seconds, Sandra followed the captain out, and then the other players followed her. Gary waited another moment before leaving as well. Outside, the crowd was heading back to the castle en masse.

"Good game." Gary spun around. Michaela had snuck up behind him

"Th-thanks," he replied, as Marcus and Sarah came up beside her.

"You were awesome out there," said Marcus with a nod. Gary nodded back, a somewhat awkward-looking gesture with all the hair on top of his head.

"Yeah, really spectacular," added Sarah. Gary smiled at her, then backed away as Michaela's wand suddenly appeared right in front of his face.

"You can take these off now." She aimed her wand at each side of his glasses and removed the yellow bindings that he used to keep them on during the match. Picking them up off the ground, she handed them to him. "They look rather funny outside of the stadium."

Gary had been so surprised by the gesture that he had jerked his head afterwards, causing the newly-released glasses to slide down his nose before he caught them. Placing them back in position, he took the bindings from Michaela and slipped them into a pocket of his robes. "Th-thanks," he repeated.

Suddenly, Sarah visibly tensed up, and Gary followed her gaze to see a girl in Slytherin robes approaching them. She stopped a few paces from him.

"Good game." Her voice was more-or-less expressionless, matching her face. Nevertheless, Gary was quite shocked by such kindness coming from a Slytherin, and couldn't find his own voice to respond with.

The girl looked at Michaela, who nodded to her. The girl nodded back, then, casting only the briefest of glances at the deeply-frowning Sarah, walked on towards the castle.

"That's the Slytherin seeker," noted Marcus, surprised.

Michaela nodded. "Sarah's favorite person," she quipped lightly. The Ravenclaw flashed her a quick glare.

"Doesn't seem like your average Slytherin," said Marcus.

"Nonsense," muttered Sarah, glaring after the girl.

Michaela rolled her eyes and began walking. "Let's go back to the castle. Will you eat with us tonight, Gary?"

Gary glanced at her and Sarah in turn. As they stepped out of the shadow of the stadium, the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw badges caught the sunlight, but Gary chose to ignore the badges and focus on his friends' faces. "Y-yes."

* * *

><p>"What is going on here?" Bane demanded. He stood on the very spot where the vampire and the girl had disappeared minutes before.<p>

Seated on Firenze's back behind his cousin, Albus looked around hopelessly. There was no sign of Edmond or Allison. They had vanished into thin air.

Firenze began walking a little bit away from the rest of the herd.

"Firenze, where are you going?" Bane asked none-too-softly.

"I'm taking these children back to their school," Firenze replied in a mild tone that contrasted greatly with the black centaur's.

"And what of the other child?" asked Ronan.

"She is in the vampire's hands, and they are gone. We can do nothing for her." With that he set off into a trot, leaving his herd behind. When they were far out of sight and earshot, he slowed down and stopped.

"Where might they have gone?" asked Albus.

"I do not know," said Firenze, looking up at the sky. "But when the Sun sets, the stars will reveal the way to them."

Albus frowned, not understanding that statement at all.

Rose looked back at him. "Do you think she will be safe with Edmond?" she asked in a quiet voice.

Albus met her anxious gaze, not knowing for sure.

"I am unaccustomed to the notion of a vampire being trustworthy," said Firenze. "But I know this vampire to be a friend of Professor Markan, and he may indeed be trustworthy after all. We must wait until the stars appear to find out."

* * *

><p>"Prongs."<p>

Harry turned, having just reentered the Auror Department. Teddy was leaning against the wall by the door, clearly waiting for his uneventful shift to end. The young understudy was eagerly awaiting the time when he would finally be given a night shift, for it was almost always only at night now that aurors were actually necessary.

"Moony," Harry replied kindly. "How are you?"

"Bored," Teddy replied. He ran a hand through his messy hair, which was, as usual, green. "How was the meeting with the Minister?"

"Predictable." Harry began walking down the hall towards his office, knowing Teddy would follow.

"What did he want your support for this time?"

"He wants to expand the Wizarding neighborhood in Cornwall."

"That would mean moving and then obliviating more of the Muggles there," muttered Teddy.

"Precisely."

"I hope you told him where to shove it."

Harry chuckled. "Not exactly, but I said no."

"Good. Although..." Teddy paused and glanced at Harry. "He doesn't need your support this time, does he?"

Harry shook his head. More and more wizarding families were moving to Britain each year, and the neighborhoods were becoming quite crowded. People were anxious to see expansion happen, even if in most cases it would be at the Muggles' expense.

Teddy frowned, and Harry decided to lighten his mood a bit. "I hear you've asked Kingsley for a few days off in a few weeks. Something about visiting Hogwarts?"

Teddy's face brightened immediately.

"No doubt the purpose of this visit is to see a certain niece of mine?" Harry went on.

Teddy's eyes widened for a moment, as though he had forgotten that Harry was Victoire's uncle. Then he nodded, reddening slightly.

"You look very happy," commented Harry.

Teddy smiled sheepishly. "I can't wait to see her."

Harry chuckled, remembering the early times of his relationship with Ginny, after the war ended.

He opened the door to his office, then stopped short in the doorway, causing Teddy to crash into his back.

The man that stood in front of his desk turned to face him. He bore a grave expression.

"Michael, what's wrong?"

"Harry," Michael Corner greeted him, "I need your help."

"What happened?"

"There's been a theft. A large shipment of dragon dust has gone missing."

"Dragon dust?"

Michael nodded.

"I didn't know your business traded in that."

"We didn't. But when we joined up with Mr. Black's company this past summer, he brought the trade to us."

Harry frowned. "_Black_?"

Michael raised his eyebrows. "You didn't hear about that deal?"

Harry shook his head, suddenly remembering his son mentioning back in September that there was a girl at Hogwarts named Black.

"Well, it's proven quite profitable," said Michael, "but since we started trading in dragon dust there have been problems. Every now and then a small shipment goes missing, but never had so much gone missing before this past week."

Harry was still caught up on the mention of the name Black.

"There are always problems involving thefts of dragon dust," commented Teddy. "It's one of the biggest products in the black market."

"I'm aware of that," said Michael. "Nevertheless, this was a particularly large and costly theft, and I would like you to check into it."

Harry nodded, his face suddenly all business. "I will. Immediately." He couldn't wait to find out more about this Mr. Black.

"Thank you, Harry."

* * *

><p>Firenze had been seated on the forest floor, allowing the two children to lean against him. When he decided there were enough stars for him to be able to find the third child, he rose, and the children rose with him.<p>

Albus and Rose glanced at each other as the centaur replaced them each on his back, then set off, following a map neither of them could see.

The forest had grown significantly darker with the onset of night, but the first-years felt significantly less nervous with Firenze there. Each time a strange noise was heard, Rose grasped the centaur's back tightly, but she relaxed soon after.

Onward they went, deeper and deeper into the forest. Firenze kept glancing back and forth between the sky and the forest around him, though he seemed completely certain of where he was going.

An hour passed. Still the centaur walked on. Albus leaned forward against his cousin's back, feeling tired. The forest noises were starting to blend into a lullaby in his mind.

Suddenly Firenze stumbled. Albus jerked awake briefly, but immediately felt tired again. The centaur regained his footing, but he too appeared to be getting very sleepy. Rose dropped off to sleep on his back.

The lullaby grew louder within Albus's head, and he covered his ears, trying to drown it out. Struggling to keep his eyes open, he saw the centaur look around and then point to a nearby plant. Then the centaur collapsed, the children falling with him.

Albus struggled to his feet, looking around. Rose remained asleep, while Firenze looked to be right on the brink of sleep himself.

"The plant," said Firenze in a faint voice, falling asleep as he did so. Albus looked around at the plant that the centaur had pointed to. Trying to take a step towards it, he stumbled and fell. The ground suddenly felt extremely comfortable, and it was difficult to move as drowsiness overwhelmed him.

Forcing his eyes to stay open, he looked around and found the plant to be within arm's reach. He reached out and grabbed it, only to find himself unable to lift his arm back up off the ground. Sliding his body over to it, he clenched his fist and rolled himself over, snapping the plant's stem.

Nothing happened. The drowsiness remained, growing stronger and stronger. He looked at the plant, bringing it close to his face to see it clearly. Flowers jutted out from the stem, with narrow yellowish petals seeming to reach down towards him.

He didn't know what to do. He could no longer lift his head off the ground. He looked up at the stars, unable to think of anything but the lullaby within his head.

His eyes closed. His fist unclenched, and the plant fell, landing on his chin. The petals slipped into his mouth, and one brushed against his tongue, causing his jaw to clench reflexively. His teeth cut the petal in half.

Suddenly the drowsiness was gone, as a burst of energy spread from his mouth throughout the rest of the body. He sat up quickly, unconsciously swallowing the piece of the petal as it fell back into his throat. Grabbing the plant, he got to his feet and looked around.

Firenze and Rose were still fast asleep on the ground. Albus moved quickly over to his cousin and knelt by her. Forcing her jaw open, he placed one of the petals in her mouth and closed her jaw forcefully, forcing her to bite down on the petal. A moment later she woke up.

Firenze's face was on the ground, and Albus struggled to lift it up so that he could open the centaur's mouth. Rose came over and helped him, and he forced the centaur's mouth open and closed on the plant.

Soon the centaur was awake as well. He immediately stood up and looked down at the remains of the plant in Albus's hand. "Asphodel. A seemingly-normal plant, but very easily bewitch-able to have such effects."

Albus frowned down at the plant, immediately dropping it.

"But who bewitched it?" Rose asked.

Firenze looked around. The forest was, for the moment, silent. "I don't know. But we should keep moving. Quickly." He easily lifted Rose and Albus back up onto his back and continued on.

He moved quickly, talking about the asphodel as he went. Apparently it was a wizard in Ancient Greece who had first learned to bewitch asphodel, and Greek Muggles who encountered the bewitched plants came to think that they were from the Underworld, associating them with Persephone, the goddess of death and rebirth. Asphodel had since become a staple in the most powerful sleeping and awakening potions.

As they continued on, the forest strangely started growing brighter, as though dawn were breaking. Albus and Rose glanced at each other in confusion. There was no way it could already be dawn.

A loud crack sounded off to their left, and then another to their right. Firenze looked quickly to either side of himself, suppressing the urge to rear up with the children on his back.

Two figures in forest-green cloaks appeared. They stood still for several seconds, studying the group. Then, in unison, they stepped forward and each grasped one of the centaur's legs.

Another crack sounded, and suddenly the forest changed. Albus looked around in confusion, and saw Allison.

She came running towards them, a look of absolute glee on her face. "Look," she shouted, pointing behind Albus. Albus turned, and the sight took his breath away.

The forest glowed. The trees were all lit up, and long bridges crossed to and fro between the trunks. Large elves scampered everywhere, most of them not even noticing the newcomers. The trunks grew progressively larger and more lit up as Albus looked deeper into the woods, until the largest trunks disappeared into pure white light.

"Wow," was all he could say. Rose stood beside him, equally stunned. Behind them, Firenze frowned at the large trees and the large elves that passed between them.

Allison and Edmond came up on either side of them. Suddenly a much smaller elf appeared in front of the group. After a moment, Albus recognized Perry, the house-elf who had visited Dobby's grave during Christmas break.

"Hogwarts students should not be here!"

"We were brought here," Rose replied.

"You should not be here," Perry repeated. He stepped forward and grabbed Rose's and Allison's robes in each hand, then the three disappeared with a loud crack.

Firenze let out a huff. Albus glanced up at Edmond. Then Perry reappeared and grabbed on to each of their robes.

Then they were in the Gryffindor Common Room. It was empty and dark, save for Rose and Allison, who were standing in front of the couch. Another loud crack and Perry disappeared, without any explanation, or even a parting word.

"What was that for?" Albus asked with a frown. "The other elves brought us there."

"I have to go," said Edmond, looking around the room with some confusion.

"You'll get caught," said Albus. "The Professors patrol the halls at night."

Edmond withdrew the invisibility cloak from within his robes. "May I borrow this?" Albus's eyes widened. Once again he had left the cloak in the forest. Once again Edmond had rescued it.

The vampire had proven trustworthy thus far. Albus nodded. "Yes."

"I'll leave it with Professor Markan," said Edmond. "He will return it to you." He looked around. "Er..."

Rose pointed towards the portrait hole. "Through there."

"Thank you." With that he threw the cloak around himself and disappeared. Seconds later, the portrait hole opened and then closed again.

* * *

><p>"That was a good game."<p>

"Yeah, it was." Theo glanced up from his essay for only the briefest of moments. The Head Boy didn't usually save his work for this late at night.

His friend Kevin Eigin frowned, looking for more of a response, but he knew it was impossible to interrupt Theo when he was working so intently. He stared down at his own half-written essay.

The door opened. Once again Theo looked up only briefly. "Hey, Vic."

"Hi," the Head Girl replied, passing through their common room towards her bedroom.

Kevin's eyes fixed on her. She seemed to float towards her room, silver hair flowing smoothly around her shoulders. He didn't stop staring until the door closed behind her.

"She seems very happy," he remarked after a few seconds.

"Her boyfriend is coming to visit." This time Theo didn't even pause his writing as he spoke. A moment later he paused and glanced up at his friend, who was staring at him wide-eyed.

"Her boyfriend is coming here?"

Theo nodded slowly, cautiously.

Kevin glanced at the closed door.

"Don't think about it."

But Kevin ignored his friend. He had to do something. This was his chance.

"Kevin! She's happy!"

"She'll be happier with me," Kevin replied automatically. Very soon he would have the chance to make her realize that. But first, he had to take Teddy Lupin out of the picture.

"Don't try anything. I'll stop you."

"No you won't."

Theo winced, knowing full-well he couldn't stop his friend from doing what he wanted to do.

"I promise, everyone will be happier in the end. Even Teddy." Teddy would find someone else, someone better for him than Victoire, just as Victoire was better for Kevin than anyone else.

But first, the pain would have to come. Teddy Lupin was going to regret ever laying eyes on Victoire Weasley.


	23. The Man with Green Hair

**A/N: Hey all! So I'm giving the first-years some time off after all they did in the last couple of chapters, much to Albus's chagrin. Just a cameo for them here. The third-years and seventh-years are the stars in this chapter, and James/Michaela fans will have some developments to appreciate, particularly the opening ;).**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 23: The Man with Green Hair**

He kissed her, again and again. He couldn't stop kissing her. When finally she pulled away from him, he stared into her eyes, and she stared back.

"James."

His beautiful Michaela. He couldn't resist her any more, couldn't hold himself back.

"James!"

He felt something shove against his shoulder. Suddenly he was lying on the couch in the Gryffindor Common Room, his half-written essay on the table beside the couch. Pearl was leaning over him, staring down at him.

"Were you dreaming about me?" she asked excitedly.

He frowned. "What?"

"It looked like you were dreaming. You were smiling. Was the dream about me?"

"No... it was about quidditch."

Her face fell. "Oh." A moment later she smiled again and shrugged. "Well, you love quidditch too."

His frown deepened as he sat up.

She sat beside him, paying no attention to his expression. "You have to finish your essay."

His frown shifted to the parchment. "Yeah, I know."

* * *

><p>Michaela laughed loudly as she chased Sarah through the air, turning easily on Sean's broom. She had worked hard over the past month, and with Sarah's help was mastering flying remarkably quickly. On the far side of the pitch, Marcus and Gary watched from their own brooms. Unlike his sister, Marcus had learned to fly back in the United States, and had even played some quidditch there, though not nearly on the level that the players on the Hogwarts teams played it. The broom he possessed was one their father had bought him not long after their arrival, long before Michaela had shown or indeed felt any interest in flying.<p>

"Marcus!" Michaela called to her twin. "Let's race!"

Marcus rolled his eyes and flew towards her. They settled themselves over the goal posts at one end of the pitch, aiming towards the other end.

"There and back again," said Michaela. Marcus nodded.

"Ready?" began Sarah. "Set. Go!"

The twins sped off, going as fast as they could. Sarah kept pace with them, watching their progress. Michaela made a dangerously tight turn around the left goal post at the far end, but came out alright and sped back towards the start. Marcus was considerably more cautious, giving the right goal post a wide berth, which cost him the small lead he had managed to build up over his sister. Sarah left him behind as she moved equal with Michaela, and Gary came up on the other side.

As Michaela passed over the goal posts once more, she let out a loud laugh. Turning a little too quickly to look back at her defeated twin, she lost her balance and began to fall sideways. Sarah was there in an instant, catching her and helping her regain her balance.

"I win!" she yelled as Marcus came level with her once more.

Marcus shrugged, adding his own ending to her sentence. "This time."

"H-hey," said Gary. "Isn't that...?"

The other three followed his gaze down to the ground. There stood Carla, clutching her own broom and looking up at them.

"What's she doing here?" Sarah asked none-too-gently.

Michaela cast a glance at the Ravenclaw, and then floated downwards, a little shakily. She quickly stopped herself when she was still a little ways above the Slytherin, afraid to get too close to the ground and not be able to stop. "Hi," she called down.

Carla waved up at her. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were here." Michaela saw that the hand that wasn't holding on to the broom was tightly wrapped around a fidgety snitch.

"It's fine," Michaela replied. "Would you like to join us?"

Carla looked past Michaela at the trio above her. The Ravenclaw seeker was watching tensely. "I'd better not."

Michaela glanced up at the Ravenclaw, and then back down at the Slytherin. "I insist. Come on, come fly with us."

Carla hesitated, then finally agreed. She just wanted to fly. Releasing the snitch, she paid no attention as it raced off somewhere unseen. She joined Michaela in the air, and together they flew up to the rest of the group.

Marcus greeted her calmly, Gary somewhat more nervously. Sarah gave a short jerk of a nod in her direction, then quickly looked away, frowning.

The five passed the rest of the afternoon flying together. Michaela managed it carefully so that Sarah wound up flying close to Carla more often than she would have liked. Carla acted no less friendly towards her than towards the others, and eventually Sarah grew less cold towards the Slytherin.

The Sun was setting when Carla realized that she should find her snitch before it got too dark. Sarah began looking for it immediately. It just so happened that the two seekers spotted it at the exact same time, and set off after it simultaneously.

Michaela and Marcus shared a glance, concerned about what might happen. The seekers raced towards the snitch, neck and neck. Carla began to pull ahead a little.

The snitch remained stationary for a while, but as they came close it raced off away from them. It took them a little while to catch up, and by then Carla was a little ways ahead of Sarah. Casting a glance behind her, however, the Slytherin hesitated and then let up, just as the snitch changed direction once more, heading upwards. Sarah turned upwards immediately, and Carla watched as she caught up to the snitch and grasped it tightly.

Holding on to the snitch, the Ravenclaw hovered where she was, looking down at the Slytherin who would have beaten her.

Several long seconds passed. Michaela cautiously flew nearer to the pair, followed by the boys.

Finally Sarah floated down to where Carla was. "You didn't have to do that," she said a little sharply.

Carla glanced at Michaela quickly. "Yes I did." She held out her hand.

Sarah looked at the hand for a long time, then placed her hand clutching the snitch in it. As Carla wrapped her fingers around the squirming golden ball, Sarah slowly released.

Their hands remained together for a few seconds, holding the snitch between them. Sarah's pale hand contrasted sharply against the Spaniard's darker skin. Sarah looked at Carla's eyes, and Carla looked back and nodded.

At once, the Ravenclaw withdrew her hand and the Slytherin grasped the snitch tightly, stuffing it in a green and silver pouch in her pocket.

"Thank you," said Carla gently.

"You're welcome," Sarah replied automatically. For the first time, she gave the Slytherin seeker a warm glance.

Michaela couldn't help but smile as she looked between the two.

As the Sun set, a new friendship arose. Carla and Sarah put aside their differences and got around to talking on the way back to the castle.

And when at dinner all five of them sat together at the Ravenclaw table, the members of all the houses around them looked at them with renewed surprise. Two Gryffindors, a Hufflepuff and a Slytherin sat with a Ravenclaw, looking for all the world like they belonged together.

* * *

><p>"It's today!" Victoire shrieked as she burst out of her bedroom into the common room. Theo glanced up at her in confusion, before he realized what she was so excited about. "He's coming today."<p>

He smiled at her happiness. Moments later his smile fell into a grimace, which went unnoticed by her. He knew that Kevin had some cleverly-planned trap laid out for Teddy's arrival.

She practically skipped down to the Great Hall, and he walked quickly to keep up with her. When he entered, he scanned the Ravenclaw table, not spotting Kevin. He found him instead standing by the Gryffindor table, talking to some of the seventh-years in that house.

Unconsciously he continued walking alongside Victoire towards the Gryffindor table. She glanced at him in confusion, and followed his gaze towards Kevin, who looked up at her as they approached.

He raised his hand in a wave. "Theo!" The greeting was loud enough that it caught the attention of all the nearby Gryffindors at the table, and they wondered what a pair of Ravenclaws were doing there.

Kevin walked forward and stepped between a confused Victoire and a suspicious Theo, placing an arm around each of them. "Behave yourselves, everyone. The Heads are here."

The Gryffindors glanced at each other, wondering what was going on.

Theo felt a brief chill as Kevin's thumb passed across his nape, just above the hem of his robes. Directly in front of him, a Gryffindor girl coughed in surprise at his sudden movement, immediately distracting his attention from whatever Kevin might have done.

"I think you're making them uncomfortable, Theo," said Kevin. "Let's go back to our table." He steered Theo away from the Gryffindors. Behind them, Victoire looked on, her elation temporarily interrupted by the odd behavior of the Head Boy and his friend.

"What just happened?" Pearl whispered to Laura. Laura shrugged, embarrassed at having attracted the Head Boy's attention so sharply when she coughed. He had looked startled, indeed almost shocked by her cough.

Victoire brought her hand up to her shoulder. A spot on the back of her neck felt cold, where Kevin's thumb had briefly brushed across her skin.

"Hey, Sis." Victoire turned to see Dominique approaching. "Today's the day, isn't it?"

Victoire instantly forgot about Theo and Kevin, her excitement returning full force. "Yes!"

Rose watched as the sisters hugged, then turned to Albus. "Are you excited to see Teddy?"

Albus nodded vigorously. Since the discovery of the elves in the Forbidden Forest he had felt quite bored, what with no other mysteries to solve. He hoped Teddy's arrival would bring some new excitement, even though he knew Teddy was coming to visit Victoire.

After breakfast, Rose was ready to head off to Transfiguration. "Did you master that spell?" she asked Albus.

Albus pulled out his wand and looked at his empty goblet. With a wave, he transfigured the goblet into a bowl.

"Good job," said Rose. "Come on."

Albus rolled his eyes, wishing desperately for something more interesting to do than transfigure goblets into bowls.

* * *

><p>James quickly glanced away as she turned. He felt her gaze, and knew that she had caught him staring at her. But after only a second, she turned back to the Ravenclaws on the other side of the table.<p>

Beside him, Pearl sighed. "This is boring," she whispered.

"I know," he whispered back a little too harshly, irritated by her useless complaining. At the head of the table, Neville looked up and glanced directly at him.

"Is something wrong, James?"

James frowned, not liking that Neville was calling him by his first name, when he referred to other students by their surnames like professors were supposed to do. "No, Professor Longbottom. I'm just trying to understand this plant, that's all."

"Well, a good way to begin is by listening to what I'm saying," Neville replied. Across the table, the Ravenclaw third-years chuckled. Sarah Anderson giggled loudly, accompanied by a loud laugh from Michaela on the Gryffindor side.

At the end of class, the third-years put back on their coats to leave the greenhouse and return to the castle. "James, you dropped a glove," said Pearl. James held out his hand for her to give it to him, but she instead tried to put the glove on him herself. He jerked his hand away, frowning.

"Let me help you," she insisted.

"No," he replied. Around them, the other Gryffindors were giving them odd looks. "I'll do it myself."

Pearl frowned, handing him his glove. She then turned and stomped out of the greenhouse. James glanced at Laura, who gave him a helpless shrug and then hurried off after her friend.

Michaela sidled up next to him. "Why won't you let your girlfriend help you, Jamie?"

James tensed, refusing to grace her with even the briefest of glances.

Laura caught up with Pearl. By now almost all of the snow had melted, and Spring would soon be arriving, but it was still quite cold.

Pearl shivered, clutching her arms around herself tightly. "He doesn't like me."

"Of course he does," said Laura, not believing her own words. "He just likes to do things himself."

"Excuse me." The girls stopped and turned. A young man with green hair was jogging towards them. "Do you know where the seventh-year Gryffindors are right now?"

Laura raised her eyebrows at the man's hair. "Well, classes just ended. Soon everyone will be going back to the Great Hall for dinner.

The man nodded. "Okay."

Pearl perked up suddenly. "Wait, are you Victoire's boyfriend?"

A smile broke out on the man's face. "Yes. I'm—"

"Teddy!" Out of nowhere, James leaped at the man, tackling him. They briefly wrestled on the ground, both laughing. It wasn't long before Teddy had James pinned.

"Okay, okay," James submitted. Teddy got up and helped the boy to his feet.

Laura and Pearl exchanged glances of surprise, which were matched by the other Gryffindors as they caught up.

"How are you, James?" Teddy asked.

"I'm well, but I think the question you want to ask is, 'How's Victoire?'"

"Well, I plan on asking her that myself," Teddy replied with a grin.

"Let's go find her then," said James, sharing in Teddy's excitement. The others could tell that he was a big fan of this relationship.

They set off towards the castle, with James leading the way.

"Is the Head Girl really dating a man with green hair?" Pearl whispered to Laura. Laura shrugged, equally surprised and disturbed.

"So how are things in the department?" James asked.

"Boring, mostly," Teddy replied. "Your father is too good at his job."

Behind them, the other Gryffindors laughed knowingly. James simply rolled his eyes.

"Though he does seem rather excited about a recent assignment he just got," Teddy continued. "Apparently there have been some thefts recently at Corner Industries."

"What?" The interjection was so loud and sudden that both Teddy and James stopped and turned on their heels. Laura was staring at Teddy, aghast—this time at his face rather than his hair. "Corner Industries?"

Teddy frowned, surprised by the girl's reaction. "Yes."

James elbowed Teddy rather sharply, and Teddy looked at him in confusion. "That's Laura Corner," James whispered.

Teddy turned back towards the girl. "It's nothing serious," he said immediately, holding up his hands. "Don't worry, Harry will have it handled in no time."

But Laura was already searching out Michaela furiously. "This is your father's fault," she yelled as soon as she found her. "He's changed too many things."

Michaela crossed her arms, looking skeptical.

"And who's that?" Teddy whispered to James.

James winced at the question. "Michaela Black," he replied, his whisper somewhat strained.

Teddy recalled Michael Corner mentioning a deal with a Mr. Black.

Marcus stepped in front of his sister. "You can't say that," he said to Laura. His voice was so stern that Laura was taken aback. "There's no way you can say that these thefts have anything to do with the deal our fathers made."

Based on what Michael Corner had said, Teddy was pretty sure there was a connection.

"And that's Marcus Black," James whispered to him. "They're twins."

Teddy had already figured that out.

Caught beneath Marcus's stern gaze, Laura had no reply. She glanced at James and Teddy sheepishly. Michaela stepped up beside her brother, looking victorious.

Teddy decided it was time to end this. He spoke up, loudly and sternly. "As I said, Harry Potter will handle this. It is not for any of you to concern yourselves with."

Laura, Michaela and Marcus all gave him sour looks. Those looks then shifted to James.

"Of course," said Michaela. "Jamie's daddy will save the day, as always.

Teddy gave James a strange look. "Jamie?"

James glared at him, then spun around. "Let's go find Victoire."

* * *

><p>Theo made his way down the Marble Staircase, still talking. It was a while before he realized that Victoire was no longer beside him. He paused on the landing, looking around for her.<p>

"Theo!" Theo looked down to see James Potter approaching from the bottom of the staircase, accompanied by the man Theo knew, from the green hair, to be Teddy Lupin. Theo also recognized the girl who had startled him with her cough that morning.

"Where's Victoire?" James asked as soon as he reached the Head Boy.

Theo glanced behind himself uncertainly. "She was with me a minute ago. I don't know where she is now." He glanced from James to Teddy to the girl.

James said something, but Theo didn't catch it. All of a sudden that girl had his full attention. He couldn't take his eyes off her.

"Theo?" said James, confused by the sudden loss of focus. Laura hid behind him, the Head Boy's gaze making her quite uncomfortable.

Theo didn't even notice that the tingling in the back of his neck that had persisted annoyingly throughout the day had suddenly stopped. The girl commanded his entire focus.

At that moment, it was as clear as day what Kevin had done, but Theo was utterly powerless to stop it.


	24. The Howled Lament

**A/N: Hey all. I realize it's been an inexcusably long time since I last posted, and I left you all hanging at a killer spot. There are two reasons for that. One is that I got bogged down for a couple of weeks with midterm schoolwork, which wore me out. The second is that, given the strong reactions from my peers generated by the events of this chapter, I decided to post two chapters at once, in hopes that reactions will level out and not too many people will to want to strangle me or, worse, stop reading the story. Everything will be explained later on, I promise. In the meantime, the show must go on.**

**Enjoy! Or at the very least, don't try to kill me!**

**Disclaimer: The characters you recognize belong to JKR, but what I do to them in my plot is at the discretion of my imagination.**

**Chapter 24: The Howled Lament**

Headmistress McGonagall strode through a silent sixth-floor hallway. By now, the students were making their way down to the Great Hall for dinner, and she knew that none of them would be coming through here.

She loved the silence, the tranquility. Whenever the stress of her job got to her, she would seek a silent, peaceful hallway like this one to walk through.

At the end of the hallway was a large window looking out over the grounds. The sill was large, but not large enough for her to sit on comfortably.

At least, not large enough for her to comfortably sit on as a human.

There was no one around to watch as the Headmistress suddenly shrank. Her pointed hat disappeared, and pointed ears appeared on top of her head. Her skin grew gray fur. Her fingers disappeared into her paws, and her back bent until she was on all fours.

The cat leaped up onto the window sill and stared calmly out over the grounds.

* * *

><p>Kevin couldn't believe how perfectly it had all worked. He had calculated the exact moment that the gaol seeds would take effect. Quietly pulling Victoire away while Theo had been going on about who-knew-what, he had pulled her aside into a quiet hallway, out of sight of anyone else,<p>

She had looked at him quizzically. "What is it?"

He looked down at the ground. "I need your help with something," he said quietly, letting some embarrassment flow into his voice.

"What?"

Any moment now.

She frowned when he didn't answer. He looked into her eyes. He knew he was making her feel a little uncomfortable, but in a moment that would change.

He saw the exact moment that the seeds took effect. Her expression changed. A light appeared in her eyes as she gazed at him. A moment of confusion flitted across her face, before a small smile dawned on her lips.

He leaned towards her expectantly.

She remained still. Within her head, microscopic sprouts from the tiny powder-like gaol seeds he had planted on the back of her neck had reached her brain, altering her perceptions based on whatever she was looking at at the time, which happened to be him. It wasn't the same as a love potion, which simply made a person temporarily fall in love with a specific other person. It wasn't as precise, but the effects would not dissipate until an antidote was applied, unlike with a potion.

The smile on her face widened. He smiled back, and she leaned towards him. He met her halfway.

* * *

><p>James had no idea what to make of Theo's sudden immobility. "Okay," he said slowly. "Well, we're going to find her." He stepped around the Head Boy. Laura followed him quickly, trying not to look at the boy who was staring at her so awkwardly. Theo's eyes followed her the whole way.<p>

James resumed his search for Victoire, Teddy following. Laura ran ahead of them, seeing that Theo was still watching her, and disappeared around a corner. Moments later she reappeared, running back around that corner. "No! Don't come this way!"

James and Teddy stopped. "Why?" James asked.

She glanced back around the corner, frowning. "Just don't."

Teddy didn't like the look she as giving him. Clearly he wouldn't like what was around the corner.

He took a step forward, and she took a few steps towards him, holding up her hands. "Please don't."

James stepped forward around her before she could think to stop him as well. As soon as he saw what was around the corner, he froze. Seconds later he roared, "Get off my cousin!"

Teddy lunged forward around Laura. The thirteen-year-old girl was powerless to stop him. As he rounded the corner at a sprint, his brain didn't fully register what he was seeing.

Wrapped within the arms of some boy, Victoire stared at him in horror. Teddy knocked into the couple at full speed, sending them both crashing to the ground.

Not seeing anything beyond the couple he had just knocked over, Teddy stopped and turned back to James in confusion. James was now frowning at the couple on the ground. When Teddy looked down at them, everything suddenly registered.

Victoire and the boy helped each other to their feet. "Are you okay?" she asked, rubbing his shoulder gently.

"Yes," the boy replied, before turning warily to Teddy.

Teddy simply stared at them in shock. James and Laura braced themselves for whatever was about to come.

"What the hell were you thinking, Teddy?" Victoire snapped at the man that, just a few minutes before, she had loved. Suddenly, he seemed to her to be such a violent brute, nothing like the peaceful, precious boy she had just been kissing before this rude interruption.

"Victoire..." Teddy whispered.

"You shouldn't have come today." Victoire wanted nothing more than to go somewhere else with Kevin and continue. Why had it taken her so long to realize what an epitome of perfection he was? Why had she wasted so much time with the green-haired brute?

Rage bubbled furiously within Teddy, but he felt paralyzed, utterly immobile.

Seeing the fury in his gaze, Victoire stepped in front of Kevin, protecting him. "It's over between us. You should leave." There was no sympathy in her voice, only anger. She was angry at him for being such a brute, and angry at herself for loving such a brute for so long and practically ignoring Kevin in the process. Later on, there might be some sympathy, some sorrow, but right now there could be none.

Teddy's body went into motion automatically, obeying her words. As he passed them, Victoire was careful to both keep her distance from him and keep herself between him and Kevin. Teddy continued on past James and Laura, who simply watched in shock, as well as all the other witnesses who had been attracted by the commotion, and disappeared down the Marble Staircase.

Victoire turned back to Kevin. "I'm sorry you had to see that."

"It's okay," Kevin whispered. The look in the eyes of his defeated rival... It was not a look Kevin would forget any time soon. He shivered, trying to shake off the power of the emotion in Teddy's gaze, and the feelings of sympathy and remorse that it provoked within him.

Victoire stepped into his arms, and he hugged her tightly. Finally, she was his.

James stared at his cousin, not recognizing her. Then he turned away, pushing through the expanding crowd around the scene.

Teddy kept walking until he reached the entrance to the castle. Then he began to run. He sprinted across the grounds, the rage within him keeping his legs moving constantly.

A sudden, bizarre sensation forced him to stop mid-stride. He couldn't restrain the scream, and his knees buckled.

He looked down at himself, suddenly feeling a stranger within his own body. His skin turned paler and rougher. His fingers lengthened, the nails sharpening into claws.

The fury that flowed through him had become something else. Within him, a monster was awakening. It pushed outwards. Hair grew along his arms and legs, then began covering his whole body. His mouth began to protrude from his face.

He screamed once more, but this time, the sound was not that of a human scream. It was high-pitched, a sound like a gale tearing between the buildings of a city. It was a howl.

From within the nearby Forbidden Forest, other howls sounded in response. Teddy looked around, feeling drawn to the noises.

From a window on the sixth floor, the cat that was Headmistress McGonagall perked up at the noises. She looked over at the edge of the forest earnestly, just in time to see a gray blur disappear into it.

By now, the Sun had set west of the castle, and the full moon had risen in the east.

* * *

><p>Through dinner, James refused to eat. He simply sat and glared across at the Ravenclaw table, where his cousin was now sitting next to Kevin.<p>

"Eat something, mate," insisted Shane.

"I'm not hungry," James replied in a steady monotone.

Along the Gryffindor table, whispers were shooting back and forth. Dominique sat there shaking her head, not responding to anything. Every once in a while, she would shoot a brief glare at her sister, not understanding her actions at all.

Farther along the table, Rose finally managed to catch wind of what had happened. She couldn't believe her ears.

Albus's jaw dropped when she told him. As one, they looked over at the Ravenclaw table, where Victoire was sitting happily, very close to Kevin. On her other side, Theo was glancing at her strangely, disturbed as well. Theo was also casting strange glances towards the Gryffindor third-years quite frequently.

Headmistress McGonagall appeared in the Great Hall midway through dinner. She swept along the Head Table until she reached Professor Hagrid, leaning down to whisper something in his ear. A fork, which seemed so tiny in Hagrid's massive hand, fell down onto his plate with a loud clang. The half-giant's bushy eyebrows shot up along his forehead.

Pushing his large chair back and standing, he bade the Headmistress follow him out of the hall, and she complied. Many pairs of eyes followed them as they left.

"Now what?" Albus asked. Rose glanced at him and shrugged.

* * *

><p>"The werewolves haven' come anywhere near ter the edge of the forest in twenty years," Hagrid huffed, leading the Headmistress down to his cabin.<p>

"This one was on the grounds," said McGonagall. "I saw it running back into the forest."

No sooner had they come within sight of the cabin then the old hound Fang came trotting towards Hagrid, barking loudly.

"What's wrong, ye' old mutt?" asked Hagrid. Fang stopped in front of him and turned towards the forest, resuming the barking. "Did yer see somethin'?"

Just as Hagrid asked the question, a howl sounded from within the forest. Hagrid knew the sound well enough to be able to tell that it was a werewolf. He also could tell that the werewolf was very close to the edge of the forest.

But that was not all that the half-giant could tell. "He soun's distressed." McGonagall glanced at him in surprise.

From deeper within the forest, a chorus of other howls sounded.

"Those ones soun' angry," Hagrid muttered. That didn't bode well.

Moments later, a haze appeared above the treetops. A loud chorus of sounds rose up, sounds of every imaginable variety. It sounded as though every creature in the forest were calling out at once.

The haze grew steadily brighter, and the sounds grew steadily louder.

Then, after about thirty seconds, the haze suddenly vanished, and the sounds died down.

There were several seconds of silence, then another howl went up from the nearby werewolf.

McGonagall waited another minute, but nothing more happened. "What was that?" she whispered.

Hagrid shook his head, stunned. "I don' know."

Another thirty seconds passed. A gentle breeze blew across the grounds, rustling the Headmistress's robes.

Suddenly, a small area around where the final howl had sounded exploded in white light. Hagrid and McGonagall shielded their eyes, and Fang turned and trotted several paces in the opposite direction.

A gray silhouette appeared out of the light, darting out of the forest. The werewolf fled until the forest was far behind it, then turned to see if it was being pursued. That's when it saw them.

It let out a howl and charged toward them. The Headmistress whipped out her wand, and a jet of purple light shot from it. The werewolf leaped to the side, dodging the spell.

A loud crack sounded as several house-elves appeared in front of McGonagall, facing the werewolf. A wave of white light appeared from their hands, spreading outwards. The werewolf had no way to avoid it.

The half-beast was thrown backwards as the light struck. Getting to its feet quickly, it faced the house-elves, letting out a loud howl.

The house-elves stood ready for the next attack. The werewolf hesitated, then turned back towards the forest. Once more, a light pulsed from among the trees, and the werewolf retreated more paces.

Looking around helplessly, the werewolf saw the light in the entrance to the castle, which the Headmistress had opened when she left with Hagrid. It ran towards the school, but quickly another crack sounded, and several more house-elves appeared. The werewolf turned in the only direction left for it to go: towards the Entrance Gates.

As the werewolf fled, the house-elves repeatedly apparated on each side of it, making sure it didn't change course. McGonagall began to fear for the village of Hogsmeade, which was right on the other side of the gates. She debated whether or not to allow the gates to be opened.

To her shock, the gates appeared to open of their own accord. Immediately she set off, seeking out whatever force had caused the gates to open without her authorization.

The werewolf ran through the gates into Hogsmeade. The house-elves stopped their pursuit.

McGonagall ran as fast as she could, cursing the anti-disapparition jinx that kept all but the house-elves from apparating within the grounds. She had never figured out how her predecessor, Albus Dumbledore, had once managed to break the jinx.

Seeing that the house-elves were no longer in pursuit, the werewolf stopped, looking around at the buildings of the village. A few passerby stopped and stared at the creature in horror. Some turned and ran, others drew their wands.

"Immobulus!" McGonagall shouted as she ran. The spell flew towards the werewolf until it reached the gate. A sound like an explosion rang out as the spell struck the wards protecting the school.

The werewolf jumped clear into the air at the sound, as did several of the villagers. Immediately it started running again, through the village and into the woods beyond.

McGonagall finally reached the gates. There she halted, watching the spot where the werewolf had disappeared. It didn't reappear.

The villagers turned towards her, nervous looks on their faces.

"I'll speak with the Ministry immediately about having an auror sent to protect the village, in case it returns," she announced. Many of the villagers relaxed and returned to their business, though several of them continued to glance nervously towards the place where the werewolf had disappeared.

McGonagall turned towards the house-elves. She didn't understand what they were doing there, how they had known there was a werewolf on the grounds. Nor did she know where to begin the questions.

She looked from one to the next until her eyes fell on Kreacher. She called to him.

"Yes, Headmistress?"

McGonagall hesitated. "Why did you show up just now?"

"The Headmistress was going to be attacked by the unknown werewolf. Kreacher arrived to protect her."

McGonagall wondered why Kreacher referred to the werewolf as the "unknown werewolf." But there was another question that needed to come first. "How did you know that there was a werewolf on the grounds?"

"The unknown werewolf entered the Forbidden Forest this evening, soon after sunset. It is not one of the werewolves that live in the forest."

McGonagall frowned. "Then where did it come from?"

"Kreacher does not know."

"How did you know when it entered the forest?"

"Kreacher heard the unknown werewolf howl. No werewolves of the forest go so close to Hogwarts Castle. Not since the fall of the Dark Lord."

The Headmistress was thoroughly disturbed at this point. Where had this "unknown werewolf" come from? But there was something else... "You heard the howl from the kitchens?"

Kreacher hesitated, fidgeting uncomfortably. "Kreacher was elsewhere in the castle, cleaning. He heard the howl through a window overlooking the grounds."

"I see," McGonagall replied. She could think of nothing else to ask. She still wondered about the white light that had scared the werewolf out of the forest, and the haze before it and the sounds of the forest it had caused, but she did not think it worth it to ask a house-elf about that. "Well, thank you for protecting me."

Kreacher bowed, and disappeared with a crack, as did the other house-elves.

McGonagall turned to Hagrid, who had come up huffing behind her. He looked just as bewildered as she was.

She looked up to the castle, with its lights beaming through the windows into the night sky. She had been Headmistress at this school for nineteen years, and while at such a school there was seldom a dull moment, never during her tenure had she encountered what she had encountered this year. The mysterious death of a student, tangles with the Ministry of Magic, and now the appearance of a werewolf on the grounds. Mysteries of this degree of seriousness had not occurred since the war.

"What would Dumbledore do?"

Hagrid glanced at her, not sure what to make of the question. "I dunno. He was a brilliant wizard. I'd sure like ter know what those lights in the forest were, though."

The Headmistress shook her head. "This school always finds new ways to impress us."

"Ye' can say tha' again."

McGonagall let her gaze fall across the long expanse between the Entrance Gates and the castle. She sighed. "It's a long walk back. Walk with me, old friend."

Hagrid nodded respectfully, sticking out his elbow. She stuck her hand through the crook, and together they began the long walk back up to the castle.


	25. In the Fire

**A/N: So to all who are sticking with me and not furiously planning my demise, I appreciate it. Onwards!**

**Disclaimer: See previous chapter, or any chapter before that.**

**Chapter 25: In the Fire**

At breakfast the next morning, Victoire sat with Kevin once more. Theo tried his best to ignore it, sitting with other Ravenclaw seventh-years farther down the table. This move, however, placed him right beside Michaela Black, and he was slightly put off to see not only the two Black twins from Gryffindor but also a Hufflepuff boy and a Slytherin girl sitting at the table as well.

Glancing across at the Gryffindor table, his eyes immediately fell on the girl whose name he now knew was Laura Corner. She noticed the moment his gaze settled on her, and hid behind a large black boy that she was sitting next to. He looked away and shook his head sadly. If he couldn't understand how Kevin had made Victoire fall for him so quickly, he certainly couldn't understand his own sudden obsession with this little Gryffindor girl.

Laura peeked around Shane's shoulder. The Head Boy was no longer staring at her. Letting out a breath, she resumed her seat. "Why does he keep staring at me?" she groaned.

"Both of the Heads are acting very strange," said James from her other side. He had been careful to sit on the opposite side of the table from Pearl this morning, and thus wound up sitting in her usual spot next to Laura, since she had anticipated that he would sit across from her. The result was that she was giving him annoyed glances every time his eyes passed over her.

James let his gaze pass from Theo to the girl next to him, still looking very out-of-place in her Gryffindor robes among the Ravenclaws. For some reason she looked particularly beautiful this morning, and he was loathe to take his gaze away from her.

Sitting beside Rose and Albus, respectively, Dominique and Molly noticed their cousin's staring. "If I didn't know better, I'd say Cupid had gone on a rampage through this school," Dominique muttered bitterly. She couldn't believe her sister had dumped Teddy for Kevin, and was furious at the manner in which she had done it. She had no intention of talking to her until things were amended.

Albus glanced from his brother to Michaela. This was something he had by now seen many times. He wished some change would occur in that story, so that his brother wasn't always left staring at her with that look of his.

Upon finishing breakfast, students began to disperse to their morning classes. Kevin nudged Victoire. "Come on, we've got Defense now."

She looked at him, smiling widely. "I know." Seconds passed, but she simply continued staring at him.

"Well, come on," he gently pressed, getting up from his seat. Her eyes followed him, and only when he was beyond her view did she move. Still smiling, she rose and skipped ahead of him off to class.

Kevin watched her go, sighing. This was wrong. It was all wrong. She was supposed to be with him, but not like this. It was too big a change, too quickly. It wasn't her.

* * *

><p>Headmistress McGonagall reentered her office and collapsed heavily into her chair, rubbing her eyes. She had not slept well the previous night, after everything that had happened yesterday.<p>

During breakfast, both she and Professor Hagrid had remained silent about what had occurred outside the castle. No one else had witnessed the events.

Suddenly her fireplace came to life. She sat up immediately, quickly making herself presentable. Whoever it was, however, gave her a fair amount of warning time to prepare.

Finally, from among the flames, the image of a large, bald head appeared.

"Kingsley!"

"Sorry to disturb you, Minerva," came the deep voice of the Head of the Auror Department. "I need to speak to Teddy Lupin."

McGonagall frowned. "Teddy?"

Kingsley sighed. "I know I promised him a couple days off, but I'm missing some important documents that he was supposed to be in charge of. No doubt he was distracted thinking about visiting the school and got a little bit disorganized."

The Headmistress opened a drawer of her desk and peeked in sheepishly at a bunch of unopened letters from the Ministry of Magic. Usually these letters served as nothing more than an annoyance, and she tended to overlook them. No doubt one of them held information about Teddy Lupin visiting, for she knew nothing of it.

She shut the drawer. "Okay, I'll get him." She slowly got to her feet.

"There's no hurry, Minerva. Just have him floo me at some point today."

McGonagall sat back down. She didn't feel like moving. "Okay."

"Thanks, Minerva. Take care."

"You too."

The head disappeared, and the flames died down again.

So Teddy Lupin was here, was he? Visiting Victoire Weasley, no doubt. McGonagall chuckled softly to herself. She only hoped that Victoire didn't get too distracted from her studies. But she had chosen the Head Girl herself, and she knew that wouldn't happen.

Then a notion hit her like a ton of bricks. She sat up straight, ears alert for a howl. "Lupin."

It couldn't be. The boy had inherited his mother's gift, not his father's curse.

The Headmistress quickly rose to her feet and made for the door of her office. She had to be sure.

* * *

><p>Victoire was one of only two girls in the N.E.W.T.-level Defense Against the Dark Arts class this year. Early in the year, this had bothered her, but over time she had grown accustomed to it, and even found perks from it. She enjoyed dueling the boys, since she almost always won. Her favorite opponent was Theo. The other students loved watching their Head Girl out-duel their Head Boy, and perpetually ribbed him about it, though they could do no better. And on the rare occasion that Theo beat her, he was always very nice about it.<p>

The other girl in the class was a sixth-year Hufflepuff named Sandra, whom Victoire knew to be the seeker of their quidditch team. Sandra was very friendly and outgoing, but in a duel she was quick-thinking and extremely agile, the same seeker advantages that Uncle Harry used himself whenever he dueled. Victoire had a very difficult time beating her, despite knowing more spells.

She was shocked that none of the other Gryffindor girls had gone for N.E.W.T.-level Defense. The supposedly-brave girls were quite content to let men protect them. Just as Albus Dumbledore had defeated Gellert Grindlewald and Harry Potter had defeated Voldemort, the men would always be there to fight and save the day.

What would Aunt Hermione say? Victoire knew perfectly well how much her aunt had helped her uncle in his quest to save the world. Though it may seem like it is always the men who do the fighting, they always need the help of women.

The two girls sat in the front row of the class, along with Kevin and Theo. Professor Brant greatly appreciated when one of the girls answered one of his questions. His questions, however, always struck Victoire and the other seventh-years as fairly simple, and they had decided early-on to allow the sixth-years who were new to the N.E.W.T.-level to ponder over them and answer. It was obvious that Professor Brant did not know nearly as much about skilled defensive magic as Professor Shahim had last year, and he always allowed the seventh-years to do demonstrations for him, rather than reveal his own level of magical ability, which Victoire suspected was rather low.

Moreover, Brant was always going on about the great protection that the Ministry of Magic provided for all of Wizarding Britain, which annoyed the students. Victoire didn't disagree, since her own uncle was the face of the Auror Department at the Ministry, but she knew that each wizard and witch needed to be able to fend for himself or herself in case something happened.

At the moment, the professor was frowning down at the textbook, as if he were having a difficult time reading it. "Protego... Horribilis? Yes, Protego Horribilis." He looked up at the class. "Who can tell me what Protego Horribilis does?"

Victoire rolled her eyes, guessing that the professor didn't actually know about that ward spell, a far-advanced version of the basic shield charm.

"Professor, why don't you teach them what Protego Horribilis does?" Everyone in the room looked up immediately at the unmistakable voice. Headmistress McGonagall stood in the doorway of the classroom.

"Er... right..." stammered the professor, before quickly recovering. "What can I help you with, Headmistress?"

"I need to borrow Miss Weasley for a moment, if you don't mind."

"Not at all," said Brant, anxious to be rid of his boss. He gestured for Victoire to go with the Headmistress.

The Head Girl rose and followed the Headmistress to a nearby classroom that was empty. Inside, McGonagall turned to her. "I've just received word that Teddy Lupin is here."

Victoire frowned, not wanting to hear that name. "He isn't. Not anymore."

The Headmistress raised her eyebrows at the unexpected reaction. "Oh? But he was here?"

Victoire nodded curtly.

"When?"

"Yesterday."

"I see." Clearly Teddy hadn't returned to the Auror Department, otherwise Kingsley would know about it. She observed the Head Girl's expression, and her voice changed to one of sympathy. "Something went wrong, I take it?"

Victoire clenched her fists. She had no wish to speak about this. "Yes."

"I see," McGonagall repeated. She placed a gentle hand on the Head Girl's shoulder. "I'm sorry."

Victoire shook her head, still furious with herself for having loved that man when Kevin had been right next to her all along.

"You may return to class," the Headmistress said softly.

Victoire turned immediately and left the empty classroom. Outside of the Defense room, she took a moment to compose herself before reentering.

* * *

><p>Albus had just rounded a corner when he crashed into someone. Both went falling to the floor.<p>

"Watch it, Potter!" spat Rachel Vicsen, a first-year Slytherin girl.

Beside her, Alexander Zarin placed his hands on his hips, looking down at Albus with disdain. "Well, aren't you clumsy, Potter."

Albus got to his feet, and offered to help Rachel up. She declined his offer, swatting away his hand and getting up on her own.

"How cute," said Alexander mockingly. "See you around, Potter." With that he stepped around Albus and Rose. Rachel followed after giving Albus one last sneer.

Rose continued walking immediately, followed after a moment by Albus, then stopped abruptly when she saw Scorpius leaning against the wall a little ways away, watching the scene with the smallest of sneers on his face. Rose found this look from him to be particularly disgusting, since she had thought he was different.

Immediately she continued on, intending to storm past him.

"Wait, Weasley," he said in none-too-loud a voice. She stopped immediately. "I'm not friends with them."

"I saw the look on your face," said Rose angrily. "It was the same as theirs."

Scorpius shrugged. "I'm a Slytherin, aren't I? It's just natural for us."

"I can't be friends with you if you're like that," Rose declared. Her father's words about the Slytherins—and the Malfoys in particular—echoed in her mind.

Scorpius was silent for a few seconds, then he shrugged again. "You don't have to be if you don't want to."

He said nothing more after that, and Rose continued walking. Albus lingered for a moment more, looking at the Slytherin.

"What do you want, Potter?"

Albus looked for a moment more, but said nothing. Rose stomped her foot impatiently, and Albus continued after her.

"Albus!" Albus stopped and turned to find Allison running after him. Scorpius followed the girl with his eyes as she approached, making no move to depart. "One of your cousins is looking for you."

"Which one?"

Allison's eyebrows rose, and she hesitated. "Er... I can't remember which one. Their names all get mixed up. One of the fifth-year girls."

Albus nodded understandingly. He did have a lot of cousins at this school. "Where?"

By this time Allison had noticed Scorpius watching her, and she took a step away from him, looking uncomfortable. "Outside the Great Hall."

"Thanks," said Albus, and he hurried off.

Allison took one last nervous glance at Scorpius, then scurried over to where Rose was still waiting, and the two continued on.

* * *

><p>Harry Potter's office was empty. From the fireplace, Headmistress McGonagall looked around in dismay. She needed to talk to Harry about this.<p>

Spotting movement, McGonagall quickly looked up at the desk. A photo of Ginny Potter was watching the head in the fireplace, clearly wondering what was the trouble.

"Do you know where Harry is?"

The Ginny in the photo shook her head.

There was a sound from the door of the office. It opened slightly, and a woman's voice sounded. "Hello?"

"Yes," McGonagall replied. The door opened fully, and a pale, skinny witch looked around the empty room in confusion. "Over here," said the Headmistress impatiently. "I need to talk to Harry."

The witch stared at the fireplace in surprise. "Er... one moment," she stammered, and disappeared down the hall.

"Thank Merlin," McGonagall muttered to herself. Harry needed to know what had transpired with Teddy's visit, and the coincidental appearance of the "unknown werewolf."

Seconds later, Kingsley walked into the office. He looked at the fireplace. "Minerva, what's wrong?"

McGonagall considered telling him, but decided it would be better to speak to Harry about it first. Harry had a much more personal relationship with Teddy than Kingsley did.

"I need to speak to Harry."

"He's not here. He's on assignment."

"This is urgent, Kingsley. Where is he?"

Kingsley frowned. "Corner Industries. I'm not exactly sure how to get in touch with him until he comes back."

"I'll go there myself. Thanks, Kingsley."

"Wait. I still need to talk to Teddy."

McGonagall sighed. "Not now. Take care."

Kingsley raised his eyebrows, and the Headmistress didn't stick around to see anything further. Pulling her head out of the fire, she grabbed her favorite broom and made for the large window in the back of her office.

Above the window, Severus Snape looked down at her from his portrait. "Trouble from another Lupin? Very surprising."

McGonagall frowned at the sarcastic remark. Not taking her focus off her objective, however, she ignored her predecessor and opened the window, hopping on the broom and flying out.

* * *

><p>The headquarters of Corner Industries was a large building, but Harry seemed to be making his way through it alright. At any rate, he was fairly sure he had found his way to Mr. Black's private office suite. Finally, he was going to find out about these new Blacks that had arrived in Britain, and if they had any connection to his godfather.<p>

Entering the suite, he found himself in a large, dimly lit reception room. Comfortable black chairs lined the dark-gray walls, and there were four black doors that led to other rooms. A large, black desk stood in front of the opposite wall. Harry made his way up to it.

The secretary behind the desk glanced up at him over her glasses. Her gaze was scrutinizing, and showed no visible recognition of who he was.

"Hi. Is it possible that I may meet with Mr. Black?"

She raised her eyebrows. "Are you asking if you can make an appointment?" She had an American accent.

"How soon can I make that appointment for?"

The secretary shuffled through some papers on her desk, then scanned what appeared to be a schedule. "Mr. Black is a very busy man."

Harry casually swept his bangs aside, revealing the scar. When she looked back up at him, however, she didn't even spare it a lingering glance.

"I know who you are, Mr. Potter." Her voice held not even a hint of the usual admiration, and Harry felt quite embarrassed at being called out on his conceited gesture. "Still, you must make an appointment to meet with Mr. Black, and I'm afraid that meeting cannot happen any time soon."

Harry nodded, restraining his frustration. "Thank you."

"Harry!"

Harry turned, and was shocked to find Professor McGonagall at the entrance to the suite. "Professor?"

"I need to talk to you," she said quickly, approaching him.

Harry glanced uneasily at the secretary, who was looking from one to the other with one eyebrow quirked. He quickly gestured over to the black chairs in the farthest corner of the room, and the secretary nodded.

Sitting down in those chairs with the Headmistress, Harry asked what was wrong. McGonagall quickly told him about Teddy and Victoire breaking up, and then the appearance of the werewolf on the grounds.

Harry frowned. "Teddy isn't a werewolf. He inherited his mother's metamorphmagus abilities."

"I know that, of course," said the Headmistress. "It just seems such an unlikely coincidence."

"We don't even know how many werewolves live in the Forbidden Forest," said Harry. "There's no way to say that this new one wasn't from the forest."

"Kreacher sounded absolutely certain," said McGonagall.

Harry didn't understand how a house-elf would be able to distinguish one werewolf from another. Moreover, this was hardly the first time that the house-elves had been involved in some strange occurrence this year. What was going on with them?

"I'll ask Teddy about it next time I see him at work," Harry assured her.

McGonagall nodded, looking around the dark room uncomfortably. At the desk, the secretary shuffled some papers rather loudly. "Very well. We should leave here." She got up quickly and made for the exit. Harry followed, glancing at the desk. Mr. Black would have to wait.

Shortly after the two departed, one of the doors in the back of the room opened slightly, and a dark pair of eyes peered out. One of the hidden microphones in the room had picked up the entire conversation, and the man's curiosity was piked.

"So Harry Potter came to see me, did he?" The voice was a deep baritone.

The secretary turned her head halfway, peering out of the corner of her eye at the large shadow through the crack in the door. "Yes. Do you wish to meet with him?"

Silence fell for several seconds. The shadow remained still. Then the low voice sounded again. "Let him deal with his werewolf problem first. Make him wait. When the time is right, we will meet."

The secretary nodded, and the door shut, the large shadow disappearing behind it.

* * *

><p>It wasn't until Teddy didn't show up at work after his break was supposed to have ended that Harry began to worry.<p>

A week later, when Teddy still hadn't shown up, Harry knew something was very wrong.


	26. Doppelganger, Part 1

**A/N: Hey all! I hope everyone had a great Halloween. Here's another chapter to brighten weekends that are probably weighed down by the round of essays due before the Thanksgiving break.**

**The language here is decidedly more cheesy in a couple parts than I usually use. My own imagination backed me into a corner, since I wanted to really try to get inside Victoire's head through this sequence. But one of my favorite James/Michaela scenes of the entire first story is here as well, so that sort of makes up for it.**

**Hope you all enjoy! I'll get the next chapter, which is part 2 of this sequence, up within the next week, before really sitting down and cranking out these pre-Thanksgiving essays. I've got my priorities sorted.**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 26: Doppelganger, Part 1**

The cold winter overstayed its welcome, rolling right through the end of March and into April. When the tardy Spring finally came, however, it arrived with a vengeance. It seemed overnight that the chilly winds were replaced by warm breezes, and the sounds of Spring mornings arose from the forest louder than ever. The forest itself seemed to glow in the morning haze.

Albus was awoken one morning by a small red bird sitting on the window of the dormitory, just outside the glass, singing loudly. He lay in bed for a long while, listening to the sweet verses.

"Someone shut that bird up," muttered Franky Truit, rolling over in his bed. Albus lifted his head up and frowned in the direction of Franky's bed, though he couldn't see it through the curtains.

Getting out of bed, he dressed and drew aside his curtain. Looking at the window, he observed the bird for several seconds. It continued its song, oblivious to the audience it was attracting.

Robert and Jonathan joined Albus in watching the bird, and finally Franky grumpily drew his curtain aside.

"You've got to be kidding me."

The bird stopped its song and looked through the window at them. For several seconds, neither the bird nor the boys moved. Then the bird lifted off the window and flew away.

Albus stepped up to the window and watched it fly, following it until it disappeared over the treetops of the Forbidden Forest.

The other three turned and made for the door of the dormitory. Albus followed them down to the Common Room.

Rose and Allison were over by the couch. Allison saw him first and came bounding towards him. "Happy birthday!" she shouted. Many of the Gryffindors present turned and looked.

Albus looked at her in confusion for a moment, then it dawned on him. Today was, in fact, his birthday.

Allison didn't stop until she was right in front of him, and threw her arms around him. Then she pulled back quickly. James came up alongside Rose. "Happy birthday, Al."

"Thanks, James."

Rose gave him a hug that was not quite as quick as Allison's, and then James's friends were around him. Shane patted him rather strongly on the shoulder. "Happy birthday, little Potter."

"Thanks." Dominique and Molly showed up next, as did the three first-year girls that Albus still hadn't really talked to: Becky, Leanna and Nina.

Finally the mob of Gryffindors around him spread out a little, and they walked down to the Great Hall.

James decided to sit by his brother today. To his dismay, the Black twins were also sitting at the Gryffindor table this morning, a few seats away from where Albus sat down with Rose and Allison. James and Michaela made eye contact almost immediately, and both quickly looked away.

Victoire passed by with Kevin, and wished Albus a happy birthday. James frowned up at her, but Albus responded kindly.

James recalled how, the first time he had his birthday at Hogwarts, he got a flood of letters from their large family. He looked up at the high windows of the Great Hall, wondering if Albus would get that same flood.

Sure enough, when the owls began arriving with the mail, several of them landed in front of the Potter boys. Albus got letters from their parents, Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione, Uncle Bill and Aunt Fleur, their grandparents, Uncle Charlie, and even a short note from Uncle Percy. Another envelope contained a picture that Lily had drawn of the three siblings, with a crown on Albus's head.

James felt a little bit of homesickness as he looked over all the letters. Then, as he looked at Lily's drawing, he suddenly remembered something he had forgotten about months ago, still sitting in a drawer next to his bed, unopened.

Out of nowhere, one more owl landed in front of the Potter boys. This one looked quite exhausted, and had two letters attached to it. One was addressed to each of the brothers.

James quickly untied the letters from the owl's leg and handed Albus his. The owl remained there, sitting and hooting wearily, as though it were unable to fly again so soon.

James frowned at the owl, wondering how to make it go away, while Albus opened his letter. "It's from Uncle George!"

James took his attention off the owl and quickly opened his own letter. As he did so, he didn't notice that Michaela had perked up immediately at the mention of the boys' uncle.

_Dear James,_

_In addition to wishing a happy birthday to Albus, I wanted to remind you of a certain conversation we had during the week of Christmas this past December. You informed me that a student at Hogwarts had products from Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes that should have been recalled a long time ago. These products are dangerous and should not still be present in the public, or anywhere, for that matter.—_

"He says he's coming here!" said Albus, causing James to look up from his letter. Michaela's eyes widened, and she glanced at her brother.

_—I will be in Britain in two weeks, and I intend to pay a visit to Hogwarts. I must ask you to set up an opportunity for me to meet the students that have these products. They must be informed of the dangerous nature of the items—_

"Hey, Jamie." James suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder, and Michaela leaned down near his ear. "How are you this morning?"

James glanced sideways at her. Her eyes were fixed on the letter, and he quickly folded it and hid it from her view. "Fine, thanks. How are you?"

She sighed, resting her head on her hand, which was still on his shoulder. The weight quickly began to hurt him. "Still tired," she replied.

He stowed the letter within his robes, doing his best to ignore the weight on his shoulder. The exhausted owl was still sitting on the table, and it began to peck at his food, which he hadn't touched in a while. He allowed it to, since he had little appetite right now.

Albus folded up his own letter and glanced at James and Michaela, raising an eyebrow.

James frowned at the look, then turned slightly towards Michaela. He was careful not to turn his head too much, since her face was only inches away from his own. There need not be too much temptation to fight off here. "You know you can get up now. It's morning."

She sighed again, turning her head slightly towards his. He felt his resistance slowly crack, and he let his head turn slightly closer to hers before catching himself and quickly looking away. "Is it really?"

He nodded, still looking away from her. "Time to wake up."

She lifted her head up, and he rolled his shoulder, trying to get rid of the ache. "Fine. See you later, Jamie." With that she turned and walked back to her own seat. He watched her go, then noticed what was in her hand.

"Michaela!" She stopped and turned towards him. He held out his hand. "Give me my letter back, please."

She smirked. "You're too good, Jamie." He could tell she was being sarcastic, but she returned his letter to him.

He took it and got up from his seat, making for the entrance to the Great Hall. Albus watched Michaela watch James until he disappeared from view. Then she looked right at him, and he immediately looked away.

* * *

><p>Safely back up in his room, with no spies to look over his shoulder, James opened the letter once more, finding where he left off.<p>

_—and that they should no longer be in possession of them._

_I am not sure whether it is necessary to mention this, but I have a certain fear regarding the reappearance of these items, which I hope may prove to just be paranoia. I fear that these products appearing at Hogwarts may be attributed to an old business partner of mine, from whom I disassociated myself long ago. If that is the case then there may be even more dangerous items within Hogwarts as well._

_Never mind, I will explain all that needs to be explained once I am there and have a better understanding of the situation. In the meantime, I only ask that you keep a watchful eye on the student that has these products. And if any student is harmed by unknown means, be especially careful._

_Until I see you, farewell. Give my regards to all the family._

_Yours truly,_

_George_

James folded the letter up and placed it in a drawer next to his bed. Then he turned and left the dormitory.

As evil as Michaela Black made herself seem around him, he had never suspected—at least not since very early on—that she might be a truly sinister character. Yet Uncle George seemed exceptionally concerned about her being in possession of those old Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes products. Could she really do legitimate harm to a student at Hogwarts?

Suddenly, he remembered Jonas Zabini, and he stopped mid-stride. According to the other Slytherin third-years, Zabini had mysteriously died in his sleep the first night of school. James had little doubt that the body that his father and the Minister were discussing that night they had dinner at the Dursleys' was Zabini's body. It had vanished, which clearly meant something sinister had occurred.

Could Michaela really have been behind that?

James needed to watch her. He needed to watch her closely. But that was the easy part. He also needed to ignore his feelings for her.

Perhaps she had struck him with a love potion? But love potions didn't last so long. Just as he was confident that whatever Kevin had gotten Victoire with would wear off soon, he knew that Michaela couldn't have gotten him with anything. His own heart had betrayed him.

But he couldn't feel so strongly for a murderer, and the more he thought about it, the more he convinced himself that she was behind it all. She wasn't only the most reasonable suspect, she was the only suspect.

* * *

><p>"Victoire?"<p>

She turned to him, and her eyes conveyed both happiness and surprise. "Hey!" She quickly closed the remaining distance between them.

He didn't move, and she looked up into his face. He wore a strange expression.

She wrapped her arms around him, and finally, slowly, he placed his around her. She leaned up and kissed him.

This kiss... it felt like none they had yet shared. She was immediately lost in the feeling of it. All of a sudden everything seemed so... perfect.

When she pulled away and looked back up at him, there was a light in her eyes that he hadn't seen in a long time. He smiled at her.

A noise echoed down the hallway, and she felt him tense up. He looked over her shoulder, then over his own.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

He looked back down at her. "Nothing."

She kissed him again, once more losing herself in the feeling. It seemed that, finally, her heart had realized that he was the right man for her.

Soon after she pulled away, there was another sound, louder this time, and he tensed again.

"I have to go," he whispered. He stepped away from her, turning away and moving quickly back down the hallway.

She stared after him, wondering what in the world could possibly be going on. Never had he moved away from her so quickly.

She brought her fingers up to her lips. These kisses had been so amazing. She delighted in finally knowing that she really was meant to be with him.

* * *

><p>"Michaela."<p>

James turned as Michaela did. Hiding around a corner, he watched as Michaela was approached by a Slytherin girl. He recognized the girl as Carla Warrington, the Slytherin seeker.

"Hey, Carla," replied Michaela, as though she were addressing a good friend. James frowned. He hadn't known that Michaela was also good friends with a Slytherin. Was he so fixated on her that he no longer even noticed whom she was friends with?

He glanced around. There was no one else in earshot. He tried to hear what Michaela and the Slytherin were saying, but they began walking away from him.

He tried to follow them as discreetly as possible. When Michaela paused, he froze.

She turned towards him, wand drawn. "Locomotor Mortis." His legs snapped together, and he fell.

She turned back and continued walking. The Slytherin's eyes lingered on him for a moment longer, and just before she turned away, he saw a smirk paint her lips.

He struggled to get up, but couldn't get his legs to separate. Looking around for his wand, he found that it had rolled the width of the hallway when he had fallen. He struggled to pull himself across the floor towards it with his arms.

More Slytherins passed by, laughing at him and stepping over him. He glared at them.

A small pair of feet stopped next to his wand. He looked up to see Alexander Zarin looking down at it. Then the first-year looked at James.

James said nothing, hoping that the boy would help him. But when a sneer crossed the boy's face, James knew he had no such luck.

"You look good down there, Potter." With that, the boy picked up James's wand and casually walked away, stowing it in his robes.

"Hey! That's my wand!" But the boy paid no attention, and disappeared around a corner.

James stared at the place where he had vanished. He couldn't believe a first-year had such audacity.

Pulling himself back to the wall, he tried to sit as comfortably as possible against it. All he could do now was wait for a friendly face to show up and liberate him. Then he would get his wand back.

* * *

><p>"Stupefy!"<p>

Sandra dodged the spell with ease. "Impedimenta!"

Victoire saw the spell coming, but she couldn't act in time. The spell hit her dead on, sending her flying back against the wall.

Sandra stowed her wand and ran over to help the Head Girl to her feet as the boys in the class applauded.

"Well done, Miss Alain," said Professor Brant.

Sandra and Victoire resumed their seats as the professor concluded the class. Seated behind Victoire, Slytherin sixth-year Rick Demoro leaned forward. "A bit off your game today, aren't you, Weasley?"

From her seat beside Victoire, Sandra turned and shot her classmate a glare. "You're next, Demoro."

Rick smirked at the bold Hufflepuff.

After the class, Kevin stood up and approached his girlfriend. "Ca va?" he asked. Victoire understood the tone of the question, which meant he was concerned. Since both were fluent in French, they had begun speaking French to one another on occasion.

She looked up at him, and he was taken aback by the intensity of her gaze. "I'm fine. Are you?"

His eyebrows shot up at the question. "Of course I am."

"Then why did you act so strangely earlier?"

"Huh? What did I do?"

She frowned, then turned away from him. He followed her as she left the classroom, waiting until they had reached a hallway with few other passerby present.

"Victoire?"

She stopped and turned towards him. After a second's hesitation, she stepped into his arms and kissed him.

The feeling was gone. This kiss felt nothing like the two before, when he had been acting strangely. As quickly as she had kissed him, she pulled away and stormed off, furious.

* * *

><p>"James?"<p>

James snapped awake. He had fallen asleep, still leg-locked and against the wall. He looked up to see Shane, Daryl and Dom staring down at him in confusion.

"Get me out of this bind," James demanded, anxious to get his wand back from that Slytherin kid and get back after Michaela. Shane raised an eyebrow, and James gestured to his legs, which he still couldn't separate. He moved his legs until Shane finally realized that they were bound.

"Finite Incantatem." James separated his legs and stood up, gently rubbing them.

"Where's your wand?" Daryl asked.

"That Slytherin kid took it."

The other three simply looked at him.

"Zarin's nephew."

Shane raised his eyebrows. "He did this to you?"

"No. Michaela did. Then he showed up and took my wand."

"I see." All three were giving him strange looks.

James swore under his breath. "Come on! We've got to find him."

* * *

><p>Professor Zarin didn't look up at the knock on his door. "Come in." He frowned as his nephew entered the office, still not looking up. "What do you want?"<p>

"I need to speak to my father," said Alexander. His tone showed no respect for his uncle.

"Then write him a letter."

"It's urgent."

Finally Zarin looked up at his nephew. "What did you do?"

"What makes you think I did anything?"

"Why is it so urgent that you speak with your father?"

"That's none of your business."

Zarin stared at the insolent boy for several seconds, then sighed. "Alexander, you're my nephew. I'm trying to protect you. But you also need to protect yourself. That means not doing anything stupid that could get you into a lot of trouble."

"I'm doing just fine without your help," the boy spat back.

Zarin shook his head. If only the boy knew. But Alexander would not be able to understand everything that was occurring beneath the surface. And Zarin already knew that his ungrateful nephew wouldn't thank him anyway.

"Let me use your fireplace."

Zarin relented, knowing the boy wouldn't give up. Pulling out his pouch of floo powder, he gave some to him. "Don't burn yourself."

"I won't."

* * *

><p>James flung himself down on the couch furiously. "Where did that kid go?" The whole evening they had looked for him, and they hadn't been able to find him anywhere. Now that curfew had come and gone, he was no doubt back in the Slytherin Dungeon, well out of reach.<p>

"We'll get him tomorrow," declared Shane. "He's in your brother's Potions class."

James nodded. "Yeah, we'll just storm in and make Zarin knock a few more points off of Gryffindor."

"Well, the professor sure won't appreciate knowing that his nephew stole your wand."

James cracked a grin at this.

Just then, Michaela entered the Common Room. James watched her as she made her way through the room and up the girls' stairwell.

"We'll get her, too," said Shane.

James stared at the stairwell she had disappeared up. Then he nodded decisively.

* * *

><p>"Victoire?"<p>

She turned, surprised at the interruption of her patrol. He approached her quickly. She studied him for a moment, unable to see his face very well in the dark hallway.

"Comment vas-tu?" she asked.

He frowned. "What?"

Her wand was out in a flash, and he was flying backwards. "Teddy!"

He changed back into his normal form and got up. "I'm sorry."

She waved her wand, and once more he went flying backwards. "You're sorry? You awful brute!"

A bang came from the nearby Trophy Room. She turned towards it. "Peeves!" she yelled.

The poltergeist appeared at her summons. "What does the Head Girl want with Peeves?"

The niece of George Weasley pointed at the green-haired man on the floor. "Make sure he leaves this castle. Do your worst."

Peeves gave a sharp salute and cast a wicked grin at Teddy. Teddy quickly scrambled to his feet and ran, and Peeves flew off after him, laughing wildly.

Victoire glared after them, anger racing through her. She couldn't believe it had been him whom she kissed before, those two kisses that had felt so incredible. She had thought that, finally, her heart had recognized what her brain now knew: Kevin was the man for her. Foolishly, she had given Teddy her heart, and now it seemed she was unable to take it back.

She would make him pay.


	27. Doppelganger, Part 2

**A/N: Hey all! As promised, here's part two of Doppelganger. Enjoy!**

**By the way, I discovered a movie called Cherry last night, and I've put in a category request to add it to . It's an excellent movie and provides several avenues for possible fics, and I've already got one being planned. Everyone should check out this movie, and I'll start on the new story when the category is added. That doesn't mean I'll slow down much on this one, though, no worries.**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 27: Doppelganger, Part 2**

"Explain yourself, Potter!" demanded Zarin, shocked at the sudden interruption of his class.

James pointed at Alexander. "Your nephew stole my wand."

Zarin shifted his furious gaze to Alexander. "Is this true?"

Alexander reached into his robes and pulled out a wand. "I'm sorry, Uncle." He got up and walked over to James, passing the wand over to him. "To you too, Pot... James."

Albus raised his eyebrows, not understanding Alexander's game. He couldn't believe that Alexander had taken his brother's wand.

James took the wand and stowed it in his robes, not taking his eyes off the boy. Alexander returned to his seat.

Zarin shifted his gaze back and forth between the two, livid. "Fifty points from both your houses." All the other students in the room groaned. "Now, Potter, please leave my classroom, and don't return until it is time for your own Potions class."

James frowned. Fifty points from Gryffindor as well? But he would expect no less from Zarin. He spun around and left the classroom.

Albus watched his brother leave, then shifted his gaze to the professor, waiting warily for what would happen next.

Zarin stared at his nephew for several seconds. Then he resumed the class.

Not once did the anger leave his voice, nor even fade at all. At the end of the class, Albus rose quickly, eager to leave the dungeon.

Zarin strode over to his nephew and physically blocked him from leaving, letting the other Slytherins move around him to the door. Alexander glared up at him.

Once all the other students were gone, the professor dropped his voice to a chilling growl. "What were you thinking?"

Alexander maintained his glare, and his lips curved upwards slightly. "Couldn't resist."

"That wasn't his wand, was it?" It was barely a question. Zarin already knew the answer.

Now Alexander's face broke into a wide grin. "No."

"Where is his wand?"

Alexander's green eyes flashed. "It will be presented to the Dark Lord, my gift to him upon his return."

* * *

><p>Sandra reached out and grabbed the snitch, flipping in the air as she did so. She let out a breath as she looked at her clenched fist, within which the small golden ball struggled. Then she opened her hand and let it zip away once more.<p>

Looking down at her teammates below, she watched as Steven fired shot after shot at Gary. The keeper dove in all directions, successfully blocking most of Steven's shots.

Though this team was out of the running for the Quidditch Cup, it maintained its heart. Hufflepuff hadn't won the Cup in nine years, and this year would be its tenth straight losing season. Yet the team maintained its hope, maintained its fight. Eventually it would win again.

Gary was the first step. As poorly as the young keeper had started out, he was quickly mastering his position. His performance in the last match against Gryffindor had proven that he could play very well in big games.

Sandra knew that she didn't have the same natural ability that the other seekers had. Each of the other three teams had young seekers in third year who were superb. She didn't think she would be able to match Carla Warrington in the final match against Slytherin, but she would certainly try.

Until a new seeker came along who could beat the others, Gary would be the beacon, maintaining the hope of this team.

She looked around for the snitch, and spotted it hovering near the far goal posts. She took off after it, imagining Warrington flying right beside her. As the snitch shot away, the imaginary race went on, until Sandra caught it once more.

* * *

><p>Sitting under the tree near the lake, James glared at her. From either side, Shane and Daryl did their best to distract him, until they could come up with a plan for how to get back at her properly.<p>

Michaela and Sarah had removed their shoes and socks and were dipping their feet in the lake. It was a very warm day on the eve of May, more vengeance from the Spring for the lingering of Winter.

Sarah said something, and Michaela laughed happily. The sound irritated James quite a bit.

He could take no more. Standing, he drew the wand from his robes. Slowly stepping towards her, he aimed the wand carefully.

"Levicorpus!" he shouted. Sarah let out a shriek as she suddenly flew upwards, suspended in mid-air by her bare feet.

James's eyes widened, and he quickly let her back down. He stared at the wand, unable to believe he had missed.

"Expelliarmus!" The wand flew out of his hand, and Michaela caught it.

Daryl and Shane rushed forwards on either side of James, their own wands drawn. Sarah was now on her feet next to Michaela, her wand drawn as well.

"Expelliarmus!" Shane shouted.

"Protego!" Michaela yelled in response. The spell deflected off her shield and flew out over the lake.

"Levicorpus!" shouted Sarah. Daryl flipped into the air, dangling by his feet. His wand lay on the ground beneath him.

Shane pointed his wand at his friend, aiming to free him. As he let his guard down, a stunning spell from Michaela struck him in the chest, and he went flying backwards.

James looked back and forth between his defeated friends in dismay.

Michaela grinned at her rival, pointing her wand at him. James prepared to dodge whatever spell she cast at him.

She jerked her wand, and James dove to the side. But no spell came, and her wand followed his movement. "Locomotor Mortis." Once more, James's legs snapped together and he fell.

"Damn you!" he shouted as she lowered her wand and moved to replace her socks and shoes.

Once the girls had re-dressed, Michaela turned back towards him. "Try that again, Jamie, and I'll break your wand." With that, she tossed the wand in his direction, intentionally weak enough that it would fall far short of where he was struggling to move with his legs bound.

"Liberacorpus," said Sarah, and Daryl fell to the ground with a thud. The girls set off back towards the castle, and rage bubbled within James as he watched them go.

Daryl groaned, picking up his wand. He pointed it at James. "Finite Incantatem."

James quickly got to his feet and ran over to the wand that had betrayed him. He picked it up and studied it. It wasn't his wand, though it took him a moment to discern that. It was the same wood, and a very similar appearance, but not the same wand. That boy still had his wand. Swearing under his breath, he looked up to the castle, which the girls had nearly reached.

Daryl, meanwhile, made his way over to Shane, who was still lying on the ground. Michaela's spell had knocked him out cold. "Rennervate."

Shane awoke and sat up, looking around in confusion. "What happened?"

"Michaela got you good, mate."

Shane frowned, looking up at James. "Why did you miss her?"

"This isn't my wand," said James, holding up the wand that Alexander Zarin had given him.

Shane got to his feet and approached his friend, looking at the wand. "Then whose is it?"

James shook his head. "I don't know." That didn't matter. He needed to get his own wand back.

* * *

><p>"Mind telling me why you're in such a funk?"<p>

Victoire frowned at her boyfriend. "It's not important." She leaned against him, laying her head on his shoulder. She couldn't get the encounters with Teddy out of her mind. She remembered the feelings of those kisses, so magical compared to the ones she shared with Kevin.

But Kevin was perfect. He was perfect for her. And that was what mattered.

Hearing a giggle, she looked up. Laura Corner passed by, flanked by her two friends. From the other side of Kevin, Theo watched her go, unable to tear his eyes away. Kevin glanced at his friend uneasily.

Theo placed his hands on the ground, as though making to get up. Kevin quickly reached over and placed a hand on his shoulder, keeping him down. Theo glanced at him in confusion.

"Don't."

"You're one to talk," Theo replied, casting a significant glance at Victoire. He was still clueless as to how Kevin had managed to win her over, but by now he had become accustomed to seeing them together and seeing both of them happy.

Though she didn't look too happy right now.

"Trust me," said Kevin. This had to stop. Somehow he had to give Theo the antidote, without him noticing and figuring out what had happened.

That meant that first he had to get the antidote, somehow.

* * *

><p>"James? Is everything alright?"<p>

James shifted his glare to Neville, who was approaching him with a look of concern.

"Yes, Professor, everything is fine."

Neville raised an eyebrow. "Then why are you glaring at me?"

James quickly looked away from him. The foreign wand dangled in his hand. He had not been able to accurately cast a spell with it.

"Very well, James, it's alright if you don't wish to tell me. I only hope that you don't do something stupid with that anger of yours."

James rolled his eyes. Little chance of that. With this wand he couldn't do something stupid even if he tried to.

Neville turned and began to walk in the other direction. James stared down at the wand. "Wait, Professor."

Neville stopped and turned.

James held up the wand. "This isn't mine."

"It isn't?"

"No. Alexander Zarin took my wand, and when I asked for it back, he gave me this one."

"Professor Zarin's nephew?"

"Yes."

Neville stared at the wand for several seconds. "This is a serious accusation, James."

"This isn't my wand, Professor. He has it."

"A first-year student would never do something so audacious. Stealing another student's wand? He could be expelled."

"I need my wand back, Professor."

"Very well, I'll speak to Professor Zarin. If his nephew really does have your wand, I'll get it back for you."

"Thank you," said James. By now he knew Neville's cautious style well, and he doubted the professor would successfully retrieve his wand. He needed to do something.

* * *

><p>"Lumos." Sandra glanced around the dark hallway. No one was present. Quickly, she made her way back towards the Hufflepuff Common Room.<p>

She didn't know what had possessed her to bathe for so long. She simply lost herself sometimes in the water of the massive pool-like tub in the Prefects' Bathroom. She had been thinking about the upcoming match against Slytherin. She would love to beat that team.

"Who's there?"

She froze, then recognized the voice that had spoken, and turned. "It's me, Victoire."

"Sandra?"

"Yes."

"What are you doing here this late?"

She shrugged. "I took too long a bath."

The Head Girl raised her eyebrows. Then she shrugged, knowing that Sandra was not the type to cause trouble. "Alright. Well, if you want, I can accompany you back to the Hufflepuff Common Room."

Sandra smiled. "Sure."

The girls walked together. The dark, silent hallways offered a sense of peacefulness that Sandra felt much more with the Head Girl present than she did alone.

"So how often do you have to patrol?" Sandra asked. She couldn't help but be curious about the Head Girl duties. As a sixth-year prefect, she was one of the four leading candidates for the post of Head Girl next year.

"Theo and I alternate nights. Though I volunteered to take his night tonight, even though I patrolled last night as well. I just felt like doing it." The truth was that, after the encounter during her patrol last night, she just needed to take this night to think. And to get away from Kevin.

It was as they descended to the first floor that Sandra got an idea. "Feel like practicing Defense?" she asked.

Victoire glanced at her, surprised at the suggestion. "Here?"

Sandra looked around. "We're in a dark castle in the dead of night. What better time for a duel?"

Victoire cracked a smile. "You do know there are also professors patrolling, right?"

"But as Head Girl you can get away with that stuff, right?"

Victoire gave a soft laugh. "I could twist it in our favor."

"In that case..." Sandra drew her wand and faced her opponent. Victoire drew her own. They bowed to each other.

Then the spells began flying back and forth, brilliant flashes of light that the girls either deflected or dodged. They each used non-verbal magic, which Professor Brant had been attempting to teach them. By now they had both become pretty good at it, mostly without Brant's help.

A jet of red light from Sandra struck Victoire, and she flew back against the wall. Landing on her feet, she responded with a jet of red light of her own, which Sandra barely managed to dodge.

"Stupefy!" Both girls froze as the spell came out of nowhere, striking the wall above Sandra's head. Teddy came charging in, attacking the Hufflepuff girl.

"Teddy!" Victoire shouted. He didn't hear her, and a violent jerk of his wand cut a gash along Sandra's side. She fell with a scream.

"Stupefy!" Victoire yelled. The spell was cast with such force that Teddy went flying against the wall, where he hit his head and crumpled to the ground, unconscious.

The Head Girl ran over to the sixth-year, who was bleeding quite a bit. Picking her up, she ran as fast as she could towards the hospital wing.

"Oh my word! What happened?" asked Madam Bell as she scrambled towards the injured girl.

"A spell. I don't know what it was."

Madam Bell quickly lay Sandra on her healthy side on one of the beds. She studied the gash. "Well, it doesn't appear to be too deep. I think I know what spell caused this. She will be fine."

Victoire let out a breath. "That's good."

"Who cast this spell?"

Victoire hesitated. "I don't know."

"Well, whoever did ought to wind up in a lot of trouble. It's very serious to injure a fellow student this badly."

Victoire nodded, looking back towards the entrance to the hospital wing.

"You may go, Miss Weasley. I'll take care of her."

"Thank you," said Victoire, and she left the hospital wing, going back the way she had come.

Teddy was still on the floor, unconscious. "Rennervate," said Victoire, pointing her wand down at him.

He awoke and looked up at her.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" she demanded.

"Protecting you," he replied. He sat up against the wall. She still held her wand over him, pointing down at him, and with the fury visible in her face he dared move no further.

"She wasn't attacking me. We were practicing dueling."

He raised his eyebrows. "In the dark at this hour?"

She nodded. "But that doesn't matter. What the hell are you doing back in this castle? I told you to leave!"

"I'm going to find out what happened to you, Victoire. I'm going to find out what changed."

"What changed is that I realized what an idiotic brute you really are. Now, you leave, before I—"

He was on his feet in an instant, leaping to the side of her wand. She aimed at him, and he dodged her spell. "Immobulus!"

She froze, unable to move. The rage within her doubled.

"I'm sorry, Victoire," he said softly. "Something happened to you, and I'm going to find out what it is." He changed form, becoming a young boy with blond hair. Then he changed again, becoming a young, dark-haired girl. Then once more, and he became a tall black boy. "You won't even notice I'm here."

Victoire's heart sank. He could pass himself off as any student in the school. He could pass through the castle freely without anyone noticing. She would have no idea whom he was disguised as at any given time.

Teddy turned and ran down the hallway. Just before rounding a corner, he pointed his wand at her. "Finite Incantatem." Then he disappeared.


	28. The Serpent and the Badger

**A/N: Hey all! I owe all of you a huge apology for the hiatus-sans-warning over the past month, but the essays pretty much rear-ended one another. Too much work, too little time. I've got two more finals this coming week, but I promised myself I would get this chapter out to you all before buckling down for those. I'll pick up the pace over the break, no worries.**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 28: The Serpent and the Badger**

"I spoke to my nephew. As far as he knows, the wand that he returned to James Potter is the very same one that he took from him."

Neville raised his eyebrows. "As far as he knows? He isn't sure?"

Professor Zarin maintained a steady gaze on the Head of Gryffindor House. "He said that he left the wand in the Slytherin Common Room over night. It's possible someone picked it up accidentally and left a different one."

"I see," said Neville. He knew it was useless to pursue this further. If Professor Zarin was lying to protect his nephew, there was nothing he could do about it. "Thank you, Professor. I will tell Mr. Potter this." With that he turned and left the office.

He strode through the Potions classroom as quickly as possible, not looking around. Whenever he was in here, it reminded him of those awful classes that he took under Severus Snape back in his days as a student.

Making his way up to the Great Hall, he rounded a corner and bumped right into Victoire Weasley.

"Miss Weasley! I'm terribly sorry. Are you alright?"

She gave him a strange look. It seemed for a moment as though she were suspicious of something. "Yes, Professor, I'm fine."

He nodded and continued on.

She watched him go, cursing herself for the look she had given him. She felt suspicious of everyone around her. Anyone could be Teddy in disguise.

A little girl in Hufflepuff passed by her, looking up at her as she walked by. Victoire caught the look. Was that Teddy?

She turned towards the girl, giving her a wary glare. The girl's eyes widened and she quickly looked away, speeding up until she was safely around a corner.

Victoire slapped a hand to her forehead. What was she doing? Was she going crazy?

Her N.E.W.T. exams were a month away, and she couldn't even think about them. All she could think about was that Teddy might be watching her at any moment.

"Victoire, are you alright?" A pair of arms wrapped around her, and she felt her boyfriend's familiar embrace.

She tensed up. "Je vais pas mal. Ca va?"

"Si vous etes bien que je suis bien." If she was okay then so was he.

Finally she relaxed, laying her head on his shoulder. She felt awfully tired trying to maintain constant vigilance.

Kevin wondered what was bothering her so much, but he knew she wouldn't tell him. Things were still wrong.

They would always be wrong.

Removing an arm from around her, he dipped his hand into a pocket of his robes. His fingers toyed with a little pouch concealed within.

Within this pouch was the antidote. It was a powder that would neutralize the gaol seeds once applied to the same spot of skin that the seeds had been planted on.

She leaned back from him, and he looked into her eyes. Her gaze never failed to seduce him, even if it was unintentional. He withdrew his hand from his pocket, leaving the pouch within, and took her hand. Bringing it up to his lips, he kissed the back of it. She gave him a sweet smile.

Neither of them noticed the boy in Slytherin robes that watched them from down the hallway, leaning against the wall. The boy struggled to suppress his anger as he watched Kevin kiss Victoire. Quickly, he turned away and stormed in the opposite direction, changing form once more once he was safely out of sight of anyone.

* * *

><p>Gary entered the hospital wing alongside Steven and four other members of the Hufflepuff Quidditch Team. Immediately they all looked over to where their seventh member lay in one of the beds. She saw them and smiled.<p>

She sat up, and the smile disappeared as she winced and clutched her side.

Madam Bell came rushing along between the beds. "What are you all doing here? She needs to be resting."

"No I don't," Sandra interjected. "I need to be warming up."

Madam Bell stared at her for a second in confusion. Then her jaw dropped. "Are you mad? You can't play quidditch in that condition!"

"We need her," said Steven.

"It's alright," said Sandra, sitting up once more and ignoring the pain. "I'm okay."

"No, you're not."

"I'm fine," Sandra insisted.

"You're not fine," Madam Bell replied sternly, "not fine enough to play quidditch."

Steven gave her a pleading look.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Smith, but for this match you'll have to find a new seeker."

Sandra glared up at the healer. "That won't be necessary. I'm going to play."

Madam Bell gave her a look that she found more than a little condescending. "If you play then in all likelihood you'll only wind up hurting yourself even more."

"So be it. I'm going to play."

Madam Bell looked at the Hufflepuff captain as though pleading with him to talk Sandra out of it.

"I trust Sandra's judgement," said Steven. "She's smart, she wouldn't play if she didn't think she could."

"She'll get herself killed! The moment a bludger strikes her, it will completely ruin the healing process."

"Then we'll make sure no bludgers hit her," said one of the beaters. The other nodded resolutely.

"A very bold statement," said Madam Bell. "But this whole school knows that Slytherin's beaters are the most aggressive in the school. They've brought more patients here than any other cause since the war."

"I will be fine," said Sandra in her most deliberate tone. With that, she got out of bed, ignoring the pain that went shooting back and forth along her side. "Now if you boys will leave me to get dressed..." Her teammates turned and left the hospital wing.

"This is madness," muttered Madam Bell, turning away and returning to her desk. "I expect to see you back here immediately after the match, Miss Alain."

* * *

><p>Flint smiled widely when he saw Sandra take the field. Gesturing to his beaters, he pointed at her. They nodded with matching sinister smiles.<p>

Up in the stands, Victoire bit her lip. She couldn't believe Sandra was playing despite her injury.

Something caught the corner of her eye. She looked over, but didn't see anything but a bunch of faces watching the teams meet in the center of the field. Had someone been looking at her?

He was somewhere nearby. She knew it.

Smith and Flint shook hands. Flint glanced over at Sandra and winked. Smith caught the gesture and stiffened slightly, wondering if he had made the right decision in supporting Sandra's desire to play. In the end this match wouldn't mean anything anyway...

When the match began, Barsk seized the quaffle immediately, and raced Gary up to the goal posts, putting the quaffle through before Gary had a chance to block it.

"What?" yelled Munden through the loudspeaker. "That's illegal!"

"I don't think it is, Mr. Munden," replied Professor Zarin smugly.

Smith seized the quaffle and rushed at Flint. A beater took aim at him, and he dodged the bludger. He fired. Flint blocked it. Smith glared at him. He responded with a sneer.

Up above, Carla glanced over at Sandra uneasily. The Hufflepuff seeker was clearly still hurting, and Carla couldn't believe she had chosen to play given the injury she had endured. She felt nothing but admiration for her opponent.

Therein lay the dilemma.

During the match against Gryffindor, she had felt nothing towards James Potter, and had no qualms about doing all she could to beat him. Against Ravenclaw, she had felt betrayed by Sarah, and had felt a huge desire to beat her.

Towards Sandra, Carla had no negative feelings. She greatly admired the girl's bravery, and would take no pleasure in defeating her.

At least she would have to keep it close. She had to give her injured opponent a chance.

Watching the game below, she saw Barsk fire another shot. Gary saved it, sailing smoothly through the air to intercept the quaffle. Carla couldn't help but appreciate the fluidity of his motion on a broom. He was a natural.

He passed the quaffle to Smith. The Hufflepuff chasers moved quickly, weaving back and forth. One of the Slytherin beaters tried to knock them off track with a bludger. Carla frowned, wondering where the other one was. Looking around, she found him watching Sandra, his bat poised and a hungry look on his face.

She saw the bludger approach, saw the beater give it a whack.

Sandra was looking the other way. Carla acted on instinct. "Sandra! Look out!"

Sandra looked at her opponent in confusion. Carla pointed towards the bludger that was racing towards her. Sandra moved out of the way, and the bludger flew by harmlessly.

The beater stared at the Slytherin seeker in shock.

Michaela and Sarah saw what happened, and both smiled. Michaela gave Sarah a nudge, and Sarah smiled sheepishly, embarrassed at having treated Carla as her enemy for so long.

The game raged on. The chasers flew back and forth, but both keepers managed to block just about all the shots fired at them. Shane watched anxiously, wondering if he would ever be able to match the level of these two keepers.

The beaters were almost non-factors. The Hufflepuff beaters hovered high up, close to Sandra, protecting her, while the Slytherin beaters devoted much of their attention to sending bludgers at the injured seeker. They knew it would only take a hit or two to send her down, and then Carla would be free to win them the match.

Carla was more concerned with this than with finding the snitch. She kept close tabs on both bludgers, making sure the Hufflepuff beaters knew where they were and were able to block them. Sandra was also keeping a watchful eye out for herself, though she was devoting more attention to looking for the snitch than Carla was.

Eventually, boredom began to set in across the stands. Nearly an hour into the match, both teams had scored only three times, and the beaters and seekers went through their endless cycle of attacking, blocking and dodging.

Even Munden's pro-Hufflepuff enthusiasm had died down considerably. "And Smith shoots again. Another save by Flint. The score still remains tied at 30."

Carla saw a glint of gold pass over Flint's shoulder. Flint noticed it as well, and followed it with his eyes. When he realized what it was, he looked up at his seeker.

Carla cast a quick glance at Sandra, who hadn't noticed, then dove downwards after the snitch. As she passed by Flint, he smiled and threw up his fist.

"And there goes Warrington!" Munden shouted, his enthusiasm returning full-force. "Get after her, Sandra!"

Sandra had already noticed the dive, and gave chase. Immediately, the Slytherin beaters moved in like hungry birds of prey, as the Hufflepuff beaters struggled to keep up with their seeker.

The enthusiasm in the stands was also revived, and the crowds cheered as the seekers began their race. Smith managed to put in a goal around Flint, who had gotten caught up in watching his seeker go for the win.

Carla curved widely behind the snitch, casting a glance behind herself. Sandra was far behind, one hand on her side, which was obviously hurting. A bludger flew in front of her, and a Slytherin beater swooped in, whacking the bludger at her. She quickly ducked it.

The other beater found the other bludger, and sent it at her. A Hufflepuff beater deflected it away at the last moment.

The stands fell quiet once more as people realized the onslaught that the Hufflepuff seeker was enduring. Only the Slytherins kept cheering, louder each time a bludger nearly struck her.

Carla caught up to the snitch only very slowly. She couldn't bring herself to put her full effort into beating the other girl. Sandra wasn't catching up to her, as she was too busy dodging the bludgers that impeded her pursuit of the snitch.

Barsk managed to get a goal around Gary, but no one noticed. Carla looked back again to see Sandra barely avoid another bludger.

"Stop them! Someone stop them!" Munden shouted through the loudspeaker. The students in the stands were muttering nervously amongst themselves, while many of the Slytherins were laughing. People looked down to Professor Hawkeye, who was hovering on his own broom barely above the ground, looking up nervously at everything.

The beaters swarmed around Sandra, attacking and defending her. The Slytherin beaters by now were not losing track of either bludger, and were keeping both between them with Sandra and the Hufflepuff beaters in the middle.

Sandra removed her hand from her side and placed it on her broom, aiming towards Carla. She sped off as fast as she could, screaming in pain as she did so, but not slowing down. Carla stared at her in awe, and the beaters scrambled to try to catch up.

Sandra sped right past Carla. Carla looked around for the snitch, but had lost track of it. Sandra kept going simply to stay ahead of the beaters. If she slowed down, they would catch up with her.

Carla prayed that the snitch would show up again soon, so that she could end the match and Sandra's torment.

Then she saw it, hovering at the far end of the field. She sped after it. Sandra saw the movement and shifted course, and was soon back on Carla's trail, still going as fast as she could to stay ahead of the beaters. Chancing a glance back, Carla saw the look of intense pain on her opponent's face.

They had almost caught up to the snitch when one of the Slytherin beaters broke away, guiding a bludger with his bat. The snitch was curving slowly, and the beater moved along a parallel course, looking over at Sandra.

At the end of the pitch, the snitch predictably changed course, and so did the seekers. The beater was in the right position. Giving the bludger a hard whack, he sent it flying to intercept the Hufflepuff seeker.

Carla saw it coming. Sandra was at an angle where she couldn't see it. Carla looked ahead at the snitch. She would soon have it. But not soon enough.

Breaking off from the race, Carla turned towards the bludger, flying right into its course. It slammed into her arm, and she screamed, grasping the violent ball in her arms as she lost control of her broom and went spiraling off in a direction she couldn't determine.

The stands fell silent, even as Sandra caught up to the snitch and grabbed it. Carla was unable to gain control, and she knew she was going downwards at some angle. Then suddenly there was a wall, and her motion changed once more. Letting go of both bludger and broom, she fell down the side of the viewing tower into a sea of yellow.

When she hit the ground, stars exploded behind her eyes. She couldn't see anything, and the pain was more intense than anything she had ever felt before. She felt rather than saw the shadows move over her. Then she lost consciousness.

* * *

><p>The Hufflepuff locker room was silent, despite the win. Sandra changed as quickly as she could, anxious to get to the hospital wing and make sure her unlikely savior was okay.<p>

The entire team chose to accompany her. When they arrived, Carla was already in one of the beds, with Madam Bell standing over her, wand poised. She looked up when they came in, and waved them back out. All turned back except for Sandra, who simply stared at the girl.

Madam Bell returned to her work, paying Sandra no further heed, and finally the girl left. She would return soon though, to see how Carla was doing.

* * *

><p>There was a hush over the Great Hall that night. People were shocked by what Carla had done. The students had never before seen one of their own make such a sacrifice, and no one would have expected it from a Slytherin.<p>

James stared at Michaela, who was tonight sitting at the victorious Hufflepuff table with her brother and Sarah and Gary. He felt slightly better knowing that the Slytherin that she was friends with was the same one who had pulled that incredible stunt today.

"James, may I speak with you?" James looked up to see Neville looking down at him. The Professor was speaking in a characteristically soft tone, and had a doleful look on his face.

"Certainly, Professor." James got up and followed Neville out of the Great Hall. Once outside, Neville turned.

"Professor Zarin spoke with his nephew. He said that he left your wand in the Slytherin Common Room overnight. When he retrieved it in the morning, it may not have been the same wand that he had left there. Someone may have switched them."

James frowned deeply, pulling the wand that wasn't his out of the pocket of his robes. "Clearly someone switched them. So now some Slytherin has my wand, and not even Alexander knows who?"

Neville nodded.

James swore under his breath. Neville frowned. "Please watch your language, James. Your mother would bat-bogey me to death if I were to let you go around swearing like that."

"I have to get my wand back, Professor."

"It will turn up, James. In the meantime, I don't think there's anything you can do."

James frowned at the foreign wand, stowing it back in his robes. "Very well. Thanks, Neville."

Neville smiled at this. "You're welcome, James."

He watched the boy go back inside the Great Hall. Then his smile fell a little.

He had a feeling Professor Zarin hadn't told him the truth. Alexander Zarin still had James Potter's wand. But he had no way to prove that.

Nor could he even mention his suspicions to Headmistress McGonagall. If the Headmistress were to call into question the integrity of a teacher whom she herself had hired and who had taught at this school for so long, the Ministry would take it as reason to further call into question her integrity. And the Headmistress was on fragile enough ground right now.

Professor Zarin had lied to protect his nephew. Neville was almost sure about that. But there was something more, a bigger secret that the Zarins were hiding.

Neville wished he could talk to Harry about this.

* * *

><p>Rose had determined to go to the library for a little while before curfew, and she dragged Albus and Allison with her. She froze when she saw Scorpius leaning against the wall outside the library, and regretted her decision.<p>

He saw her before she could avoid it. "Hi, Weasley."

"Why are you always loitering like this, Malfoy?"

Scorpius raised his eyebrows, at a complete loss for what loitering might mean. Neither Albus nor Allison knew, either.

Typical daughter of Hermione Granger.

"Why are you always just standing somewhere, leaning against the wall like that."

Scorpius shrugged, looking around. "Well there's not much else to do, is there?"

Rose rolled her eyes. "Get a life." She continued walking, until he spoke to her again.

"Come on, Weasley. After today, not even you can say that all Slytherins are bad."

Rose gave him a sharp glance. "Well your seeker isn't. You haven't yet given me any reason to think that you're not.

Scorpius smiled. "Well you haven't yet given me a chance, have you?"

"No, and I don't intend to." With that, Rose continued walking, determined not to stop for anything else he said.

A loud crack stopped her, and she turned. Perry the house-elf was standing in front of the Slytherin, looking around at the four of them. With another crack, Kreacher appeared as well, and grabbed onto Albus and Scorpius with each hand, disapparating with them. Rose and Allison exchanged a glance before Perry grabbed onto each of their hands with his own small ones and disapparated.


	29. The Sylvarum

**A/N: Yes, you all read that right. We've reached the title chapter! Time for (some of) the questions to be answered, and others to be asked.**

**I'm pretty essayed out after the semester, so this is one of those times when I'm not a huge fan of grammar. Sorry if there are any overly hideous errors. The other issue that I've discovered with revising and posting after following chapters have already been written is that I always feel like I'm repeating myself, and sometimes can't tell when something is actually too repetitive.**

**Anyway, after this chapter there should be only around nine or ten left. The pieces are moving into position...**

**Enjoy! Also, Happy 2012!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 29: The Sylvarum**

Once more the massive trees stood before them, filled with light. Scorpius stared at them in awe. Albus looked around and discovered that the house-elves that had brought them here were no longer here. Instead, two of the large elves approached them. They were barely distinguishable from each other, still wearing the identical green cloaks.

The elves stopped in front of the four children, eyeing each of them in turn. Neither made any sound, and none of the children dared make any sound either.

In unison the elves turned, beckoning for the children to follow them. They strode between the trees with long, gliding strides, and the children had to move quickly to keep up.

Other elves moved to and fro between the trees, and even more passed above on the wooden bridges. This time they seemed completely oblivious to the children's presence. Albus guessed that this time their arrival was expected...

As they went deeper into the illuminated woods, each tree was larger than the one before it. The light was growing steadily brighter, and the children soon felt the need to shield their eyes as they walked. The elves did not seem to be at all bothered by the brightness.

The elves that were leading the children stopped. Scorpius saw them stop and held out his arms to stop Albus and Rose on either side of him, since by now they were walking with their hands over their eyes. Allison crashed into his back.

They were standing in front of a tree. Or at least it appeared to be a tree. If it was a tree, then it was larger than any tree that any of the children could ever imagine. The bark stretched out on either side of them, barely curving at all into the distance.

One elf grabbed onto Scorpius and Rose with each hand, the other onto Albus and Allison. A loud crack later, they were all standing in a long hallway. From the looks of the walls of the hallway, it was carved into the tree itself. The walls, floor and ceiling were all one big mass of wood, and at intervals the rings of the tree could be seen. The hallway went on and on through the rings, until in the distance a brown door could be seen, darker than the wood around it.

The elves walked down the hall towards the door. There were other doors all along the hallway at irregular intervals, but Albus kept his attention focused on the door straight ahead of them.

* * *

><p>Headmistress McGonagall looked out the window of her office at the night sky outside. She enjoyed looking at the stars, but tonight it was the moon that drew her attention. It was one night short of full.<p>

During the full moon in April, she had heard howling, but no werewolf had appeared on the grounds. Yet she had a feeling that tomorrow night something was going to happen.

She wanted Harry here. He could deal with Teddy, without harming him.

Walking over to her fireplace, she threw in some floo powder, hoping that this time he would be in his office.

* * *

><p>Lily let out a squeal as her father tickled her. Harry had come home early tonight, having nothing to do at work. The two major lingering cases were at a standstill, as he still had no access to Mr. Black and Teddy was still missing.<p>

Teddy's absence was preoccupying him so much that he really couldn't worry about the problems at Corner Industries right now. There had been another theft, a small one, but Harry had barely given it a thought.

Ron had just left, after accompanying Harry back. Though Ron had other assignments, he was just as worried about Teddy as Harry was, and was also putting off his smaller cases to help Harry look. But they had no leads.

* * *

><p>McGonagall withdrew her head from the fire, letting out a sigh. Once more she had intruded upon an empty office. But this time no secretary had shown up.<p>

She debated whether she should try the Potter home. But she didn't want to disturb the Potters with a simple hunch.

Things would be okay. If Teddy showed up as a werewolf, she would deal with him.

And she would have help. Hogwarts always provided help.

* * *

><p>Harry knew that tomorrow night was the full moon. And he knew where Teddy would want to go, if he were in fact being driven by Lycan instincts.<p>

Victoire was at Hogwarts.

Harry had gone there in secret the night of the full moon in April, and stowed away atop the Astronomy Tower, from where he had a view of all edges of the grounds. He disliked being atop that tower again, remembering the Headmaster who had died up there. But he had thought it a necessary task, for the protection of the students.

No werewolf had appeared that night. Nor had Teddy appeared in human form.

Harry debated with himself about whether he should return tomorrow night.

There was little else he could do. He would return, just in case. The students needed to be kept safe.

* * *

><p>It seemed like forever before the elves and the children reached the door. They walked on and on, and it barely seemed to get any closer.<p>

When finally they reached the door, it opened on its own. The children shielded their eyes against the bright light that emanated from within. The elves simply strode into the light, and with some hesitation, the children followed.

It took a while for their eyes to adjust so that they could actually see anything. They were in a massive, circular room. The wood was embedded with large jewels of different colors, which reflected the light in colorful sparkles.

In the center was a huge pit, from which the light emanated. Within the pit, the light seemed to ebb and flow, as though it were liquid.

Around the pit sat more than thirty elves on large green cushions. They all looked at the children with expressionless faces.

There was a crack, which sounded not nearly as loud in this room as it usually did in the outside world. Kreacher stood in front of them. The red and green towels that he wore as a makeshift tunic reflected the light as though they themselves had tiny jewels within, and the gold locket that he wore seemed to shine, as the angled surface acted like a mirror in the brightness of the room.

There was another, far louder crack, and the children looked around, not seeing where it had come from. Then, from high up, an elf floated down and hovered over the center of the pit, standing on the air itself. This elf was somewhat larger than the others, but wore the same green cloak and looked at the children with the same expressionless face.

* * *

><p>James lay in bed, unable to sleep. His mind was flooded with anticipation.<p>

Tomorrow, Uncle George would arrive, and then the truth about Michaela Black would come out.

He dreaded the answer. He didn't want to think of Michaela as evil, not when she was the girl that popped up in his dreams so often, but at the same time, he couldn't think of her as good. She simply did too many things of questionable nature, and he couldn't help but think that she was behind the murder of Jonas Zabini.

His heart sank a little more each time the notion passed through his mind.

Tomorrow, something big would happen. Something very big. And he almost didn't want it to.

He wished that, at least, he had his wand with him.

* * *

><p>Theo patrolled the hallways in silence, lost in thought. Victoire had once again asked him to take her patrol, as she wasn't feeling well. This had been going on for days now, with her not wanting to patrol at night.<p>

Was she afraid of something? He looked around nervously, holding his lit wand aloft. The shadows seemed to spread in all directions.

A sound caused him to turn suddenly. A staircase moved in the Grand Staircase down the hall. He walked towards it.

Standing on the landing, he watched as the staircases moved all around him. He looked up towards the seventh floor, where the portrait of the fat lady hid the Gryffindor Common Room. Behind that portrait lay Laura, no doubt by now fast asleep.

Theo shook his head. He knew this infatuation wasn't real. Kevin had done something to him, at the same time he had done something to Victoire.

He had to fight it, or else he was going to wind up getting himself in real trouble.

* * *

><p>The large elf's mouth opened, and suddenly a series of sounds filled the air. The noises came from no particular direction, as though the air itself were producing them. Albus could tell the sounds were words, but he was clueless as to the language.<p>

When the elf's mouth closed, the noises stopped. Then Kreacher spoke.

"What you see before you is the Sylvarum."

Albus frowned, not knowing whether Kreacher meant the large elf or the pit of light or the room as a whole.

"The Sylvarum is made up of the collective memory of all of the Sylvar, containing all the observations they have ever gathered."

"It's a pensieve!" exclaimed Rose. Albus looked closely at the pit, and saw that the liquid light within did in fact resemble memories in a pensieve, though these memories were significantly brighter than the usual ones.

"It serves as the collective mind of the Sylvar, guiding them in everything they do."

"Greatest Strength and Brightest Hope from Remembering the Past," Rose quoted. She had asked her mother about the runes on the Sylvar amulet that Uncle Harry had given her, and her mother had said those words.

Kreacher looked at her in surprise. "That is the Sylvar motto."

Above, the large elf's mouth opened once more, and again the sounds came out of the air.

Once the elf was finished, Kreacher translated once more. "You have been brought here to view a specific set of memories relevant to all within Hogwarts School. There is a danger within the school, one that the Sylvar fought long ago and which now threatens the students. You must be made aware of this danger." Kreacher looked straight at Scorpius as he said this last part, sending a chill down the boy's spine.

Kreacher turned towards the pit, still speaking the words of the large elf. "Step forward, students of Hogwarts, and witness the memories of the Sylvar."

* * *

><p>A loud crack filled the dormitory. Sarah poked her head out from around the curtain, making sure none of her companions had awoken. No sound came from behind any of the other blue curtains.<p>

"Young Mistress called for Perry?" Perry asked in a soft voice.

"Yes," Sarah replied. "I need you to do something for me... and for a friend of mine."

The house-elf bowed low. "Perry will serve his young mistress, and his young mistress's friend. What do they require?"

Sarah bit her lip, hesitating for a moment. "I need you to watch James Potter."

The house-elf straightened and looked at her in confusion.

"Do it subtly. Make sure he doesn't know you're watching."

"Perry guesses that it is Miss Black's wishes that prompts his young mistress to ask this of him."

"Michaela didn't ask me to do this, but yes, I'm doing it for her. Don't let him come near her."

Perry was silent for a moment, then nodded. "Perry will watch Mister Potter for Miss Black, and for his young mistress. Perry will not let Mister Potter approach Miss Black, and Perry will make sure Mister Potter does not know he is watching."

"Thank you, Perry," said Sarah.

But the house-elf continued. "Perry is very good at confusing Mister Potter. He did it before to make sure that Mister Potter and Miss Black didn't kiss, even though he had to put rotten egg all over Miss Black to do it."

Sarah's eyes widened. "That was you?" That was the reason that Michaela had gone on such a rampage against James, and they still weren't on remotely peaceful terms since that incident.

"Master Sam made it quite clear that Mister Potter and Miss Black should not kiss anymore. Master Sam wants Miss Black to be with him."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Master Sam," she muttered under her breath. "I'm going to kill 'Master Sam.'"

"Perry does not wish Mistress Sarah to kill Master Sam."

"I'm not actually going to kill him, Perry."

"Perry is aware of the humor."

She couldn't believe that Perry was responsible for the ongoing rivalry. All of a sudden, all the quarrels between the two seemed so... useless.

And she couldn't believe that she had hexed James's friend Daryl over the same trivial issue. She felt ashamed of herself.

Receiving no further orders, Perry bowed low once more. "Perry will carry out his young mistress's wishes."

* * *

><p>Flint lay awake in bed, fighting to control his rage. He couldn't believe what Warrington had done. She had sacrificed the match in order to save the opponent. It was the most humiliating incident Slytherin had ever endured in quidditch.<p>

The Slytherin Common Room had been silent this evening. Everyone was shocked and furious. Warrington had betrayed her house, a betrayal such as Slytherin had not felt since Draco Malfoy's numerous failures during his last two years at Hogwarts.

She was going to pay. He was going to make her pay. He was going to make her experience so much more pain than what she might currently be going through for her idiocy.

* * *

><p>The children stood on the edge of the pit, looking down into it apprehensively. Kreacher now stood behind them, waiting. All the Sylvar in the room were still watching them expressionlessly.<p>

"Are we supposed to jump?" Allison asked, fear evident in her voice. They couldn't see anything below the liquid light.

Rose leaned out over the light, looking down at it. "I suppose so," she replied, steeling her resolve.

She made to jump, but Allison's hand shot out and grabbed her arm. "Wait!" At that moment, Scorpius jumped. His feet left the wood and swept out over the light. For a moment, he seemed to hover over nothing, then he went downwards. The Gryffindors watched until he disappeared into the light.

They waited. Nothing.

Finally, Rose jumped, this time before Allison could stop her. She went out and down, disappearing into the light just as Scorpius had.

Albus glanced at Allison. The girl was staring at the place where Scorpius and Rose had disappeared, wide-eyed. It didn't look like she was about to make any move to go in after them.

Reaching down, he took her hand in his. "Come on. It will be okay."

She didn't appear to have heard him. Then, after a second, she nodded.

In unison, they leaped out over the light. Albus had the briefest sensation that he was flying, and grasped tightly onto Allison's hand. Then, quickly, the flying turned into falling, and the two sped downwards into the light.


	30. The Ancient Clan of Zar

**A/N: Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 30: The Ancient Clan of Zar**

They fell farther and farther through the light. On and on. And then they stopped falling, but they didn't land on anything.

They were hovering in midair, in the midst of the light. Then it began to dissipate. Below them was a dark field, covered by tents grouped closely together, stretching all the way to the horizon.

Each tent was marked by a flag. The largest tents were in the center of the grouping, and these bore green flags with large, gold stars on them. Amidst these tents moved Sylvar elves, all as large as the large elf that had hovered above the Sylvarum.

Looking around, they saw other flags on other tents. There were all manner of colors and all manner of emblems. Between them, other elves scurried, all the same size as the large Sylvar, but wearing different cloaks. Some of the cloaks were very plain, others were colorful and elegant.

Albus and Allison had no idea what was going on as they watched the elves below, but they could tell that the elves looked anxious.

Off to one direction, several loud sounds were heard. The sounds quickly began to spread out.

Albus and Allison looked towards the sounds, and suddenly they were flying in that direction. They saw shadows passing among a group of tents with orange flags, and the elves there appeared to be trying to fight the shadows. They watched as one elf fell, clutching its arm.

Soon the fighting had broken out in other areas as well. The shadows appeared out of the darkness, invisible until they had the elves within range of deadly attacks. The spells were invisible, not like the flashes of light that come with most spells that humans cast from wands.

The shadows also were clutching daggers. Albus focused on one, and suddenly he was flying towards it. He wound up just above the ground, with a shadow right in front of him. The blade was inches from his face, and Albus could see that it had a slight purple glow. Looking closer at the shadow itself, Albus saw that it was an elf, its face painted black and hidden by a large black hood. The cloak was a perfect black, almost as though it were made of darkness itself rather than some black material.

The elf set in motion, and as he flitted away between the tents, Albus quickly lost him in the darkness.

Suddenly, there was an explosion of white light, accompanied by a massive boom. Several shadows went flying through the air. Other explosions went off in other areas, and more shadows were uprooted from the darkness. They fell in heaps, and elves set upon them.

Some spells from the elves destroyed the black cloaks, rendering the shadow-elves visible. From that point, it was clear that the elves held the upper hand, and many of the shadow-elves turned and ran. Albus saw a shadow-elf try to disapparate, but the loud crack was cut off by another sound that sounded like a bell being struck, and the shadow-elf was unable to disappear. A blast of white light sent it to the ground.

More disapparitions were cut off, and the shadow-elves tried to flee on foot. This too failed, as several Sylvar apparated and cut off their retreat. With the shadow-elves surrounded, the white light flooded the whole battle.

The battle became a massacre. Albus couldn't watch anymore, and he saw that Allison had averted her eyes as well. She squeezed his hand tightly.

Suddenly, the whole scene was engulfed in white light. Albus had the sudden sensation that he was lying on something hard.

Opening his eyes, he looked around at the familiar surroundings of the Gryffindor Common Room.

* * *

><p>Sarah swore under her breath. Perry had disapparated before she could stop him. She wasn't even sure she wanted him to keep James away from Michaela anymore.<p>

She couldn't believe that it had all been a set up. The entire feud between James and Michaela had been set up by Perry and Sarah's own brother... or at least the part of it that been especially hot after Christmas break.

Something had to change, very soon. The feud had to end, and Perry following her previous orders was not going to end it.

"Perry!" she called, still trying not to wake up her sleeping roommates. "Perry!"

But the house-elf didn't appear.

"Perry! Where are you?"

Still no apparition.

She decided that she had to do something, before Perry did something that would heat up the stupid feud even more.

Quickly and silently, she put on her Ravenclaw robes and left the dormitory. Making her way down to the common room, she found some students asleep in there, the textbooks they had been up late reading having become pillows as they fell asleep. Careful not to trip over any of them, she made her way to the door.

"Sarah?"

She turned, immediately recognizing the whispered voice. "Sean? What are you doing awake?"

"Couldn't sleep," he muttered sleepily. "I feel really hungry."

Sarah shut her eyes, once again cursing the fact that the house-elf wouldn't appear. "Okay. Go back to bed. I'll get you something from the kitchens."

His eyes widened. "You're going to sneak down to the kitchens?"

She grimaced, recognizing that this certainly didn't go with her M.O. "I have to. I have to speak with the house-elves."

Sean rubbed his eyes. "I'm coming with you." It wasn't a question.

"Absolutely not," she replied sternly. "Go back to bed."

"No." He wouldn't budge. "I've snuck down there before." He reached into a pocket of his robes and withdrew something silvery and translucent. "I have this."

She frowned. "What is that?"

He threw the cloak over himself and disappeared. Then he reappeared, removing the cloak. "It belongs to Albus. Don't tell him I'm using it."

She frowned. Albus? James's brother Albus? "Did you steal it from him?"

Her brother shook his head. "One time when I went down to the kitchens, Professor Markan was there with another man. They were talking to the house-elf Kreacher about Albus. Apparently Kreacher works for the Potters. The man had Albus's cloak, and wanted Kreacher to return it to him."

"And you wound up with it how?"

"Professor Markan saw me, and I was afraid he would take points from Ravenclaw. I told him I would bring the cloak back to Albus."

"I see." Sarah frowned down at her brother. "How long ago was this?"

He looked down sheepishly. "Almost two months ago."

"And you never gave it back to him?"

Sean gazed at the cloak longingly. "It's so useful. I can go anywhere in the school. I can see anything, and they never know. This school is so amazing."

Sarah found herself quite curious as to what secrets about the school her brother had discovered under Albus's invisibility cloak. But that would have to wait. "You have to give it back to him."

"I know," he replied sadly.

She looked at the cloak. "But in the meantime..." She reached out and took the cloak from her brother, throwing it over herself. "...I'm going down to the kitchens."

"I'm coming with you," he repeated.

Sarah knew her brother would come even if she didn't let him. "Fine," she muttered, letting him under the cloak. Together they left the Ravenclaw common room and made their way down the spiral staircase.

* * *

><p>Albus got up from the floor, as did Allison, Rose and Scorpius. They all looked around with identical confused looks.<p>

"Is this your common room?" asked Scorpius, looking around. He seemed quite impressed.

"It's much nicer than the Slytherin one, I take it?" replied Rose with one eyebrow quirked, though she was still confused as to how they had come to be there.

"Yes," Scorpius replied. "Huh?" The others turned to look at him, and followed his gaze to where Perry the house-elf was sitting on the steps leading up to the girls' dormitories.

"Perry? What are you doing here?"

"Master Potter does not wish to know what Perry is doing here. Master Potter wishes to know how he and his friends came to be here."

"Well, that too."

"The Sylvarum brought the Hogwarts students to where they should be."

"I shouldn't be here," said Scorpius.

Perry appeared to ignore him. "Perry does not know what the Sylvarum revealed to the Hogwarts students."

"It was a trial," Scorpius replied. "An elf trial, with a judge and everything."

"That's not what we saw," said Allison. Scorpius frowned at her. "We saw a battle." Albus nodded in agreement.

"I saw something different," said Rose. All three turned to look at her. "But it's difficult to explain."

Perry's gaze held on her for a few seconds, the tennis ball-sized eyes revealing no inner thoughts. Then his gaze shifted to Scorpius. "Would Master Malfoy tell more about the trial that the Sylvarum showed him?"

"Don't call me 'Master,'" the Slytherin replied immediately.

"If Master Malfoy so wishes, Perry will refrain from calling him 'Master.'"

Scorpius frowned, but related what he had seen nonetheless. "There was a trial, with an elf in front of a judge and surrounded by several other elves. The elf was forced to... do something." Scorpius stared at his finger, trying to figure out how to explain. "The others placed a goblet of water under his finger, and made him dip his finger in it. The water turned purple for a moment, then became clear again. The other elves didn't like it."

Albus saw no connection between this memory from the Slyvarum and the one that he and Allison saw. When Perry shifted his gaze to her, he waited for her to say something, not knowing what he would say himself.

"We saw a battle," Allison repeated. "Many elves were attacked by other elves wearing black cloaks. But all the elves in black cloaks were killed."

Perry held his gaze on her, expressionless. Then slowly his gaze shifted to Albus.

Albus didn't know what to add. "It was strange. The elves that attacked were like shadows, appearing out of the darkness. But the Sylvar used spells of white light to defeat them, and didn't let any escape. I guess the Sylvar killed all the shadow-elves."

Perry's silent gaze remained on him for just a moment longer, then swept over to Rose, who was frowning.

"I think..." Rose began, thinking hard, "...that there is a connection between all of these. What I saw was an elf in a black cloak being cursed by several Sylvar. The curses transformed it, made it look more like a human."

Before she could say anything more, Scorpius cut in. "The elf that was on trial was also wearing a black cloak, while the judge and the other elves wore the green cloaks of the Sylvar."

"Yes!" Perry exclaimed. "The Sylvarum showed the Hogwarts students the history of the Rebellion of the Zar!"

Scorpius raised his eyebrows. "The Zar?"

"The Zar were an ancient clan of elves who experimented with dark magic. They developed new powers that the other elves, even the Sylvar, did not have."

"And of course the other elves didn't like that," said Scorpius.

"Mysterious deaths began occurring among the other clans. There did not seem to be any cause, no trace of any dark magic or poison or anything else." Perry gave an involuntary shudder. "But all the elves knew that the Zar were responsible. Finally, the Sylvar decided to take one of the Zar prisoner, and discover how they were killing other elves."

Scorpius's eyes widened. "That was poison, wasn't it? What the Zar elf did with its finger."

Perry nodded. "The Zar discovered the ability to secrete poison from their fingers. The poison is unnoticeable in any drink less than a second after it enters, and untraceable in the body once it is dead. The Zar were also able to kill just by scratching others with their fingernails, but that would of course leave a mark."

Albus's eyes widened. Perhaps the Sylvarum had revealed to them the secret behind the death of Jonas Zabini. "Do the Zar still exist?"

"No. The battle that the Sylvarum showed you occurred when the Sylvar gathered all the elves of all the clans to stop the Zar. The Zar ambushed everyone, but they were defeated. All were killed, so that the danger would not remain."

Well, perhaps the Sylvarum had not revealed the secret after all.

Rose frowned, still puzzling over the memory that the Sylvarum had shown her.

Perry continued. "There remained, however, the Zar elf that had been taken prisoner. The Sylvar considered killing him, too, to end the threat forever. But they could not kill in such cold blood."

Rose's eyes widened. "So they placed that curse on him."

"They transformed him into a human," said Perry, as if it were a simple, everyday exercise.

The mouths of all the children fell open at once.

"That is the only time in history that that punishment has ever been forced upon an elf."

Scorpius frowned. "It's a punishment to become human?"

Perry nodded. "The transformation caused the elf to lose many powers. Humans cannot contain much of the magic that elves control. Had the elf not let go of his powers, the transformation would have killed him."

Rose had a strange look on her face. Albus kept glancing at her, wondering what she was thinking. Finally he asked. "Rose, what is it?"

She glanced at him. "Zarin."

Albus frowned, not understanding.

"Yes, Mistress Weasley. The Zarin family are descended from this elf."

The eyes of the other children widened.

"And do they still have that poison magic?" Scorpius asked.

"Perry does not know."

Albus and Rose exchanged a long glance.

"So Professor Zarin may be able to kill just by touching someone's drink, and no one would know it was him?"

Perry nodded. "It is possible."

"Does the Headmistress know about this?" Rose asked.

Perry gave her a look of surprise, and shook his head. "Perry does not believe the Sylvarum has shown these memories to any other human."

"We have to tell her," said Albus. The other three nodded in agreement.

"It is up to the Hogwarts students to decide what to do with the information the Sylvarum has chosen to give them," said Perry. "But first, they should come with Perry down to the kitchens."

"The kitchens?" asked Albus, frowning.

"Why did the Sylvarum choose to tell us? Why did the elves bring us there instead of someone else?" asked Rose.

Perry shrugged. "Perry does not know."

* * *

><p>Sean rounded a corner and crashed into someone, sending him back into his sister and the pair of them to the ground beneath the cloak. The boy he had crashed into remained on his feet, looking around in confusion.<p>

"Sorry," Sean muttered, forgetting that the boy couldn't see who had crashed into him.

"Who's there," asked the boy, frightened. He was young, appeared to be as young as Sean, and wore Hufflepuff robes.

"Oh," Sean muttered, quickly pulling the cloak away from himself and his sister. "Sorry about that."

The boy jumped as they appeared out of thin air before him.

"It's okay," said Sarah quickly, for the boy looked like he was about to scream, and she didn't want to attract any unwanted attention. "It's just an invisibility cloak."

"A what?"

"It makes you invisible," said Sean.

The boy stared at the translucent cloak. "That's cool!"

"What's your name?" Sean asked.

The boy frowned at him. "I'm Harry Dursley. I'm in your Potions class."

"Oh yeah," Sean replied, remembering him. Harry was a Muggle-born, and while Sean had nothing against Muggle-borns, he had not been impressed with Harry's lack of knowledge of magic.

"I don't know you, though," said Harry, looking up at Sarah.

"I'm his sister," Sarah replied, pointing down from above Sean's head.

"So are you bound for the kitchens?" Harry asked, looking around quickly.

"Yes," Sean replied. "You as well?"

Harry nodded, then quickly beckoned and turned around. Around the next corner, they found the painting that was the entrance to the kitchens. Sean hadn't realized they had gotten so close so quickly.

Harry tickled the pear, and they entered to find a sight before them.

Four of their fellow first-years stood in the center of the kitchen, surrounded by the house-elves, Professor Markan, and the man who had given Sean the invisibility cloak. The entire ensemble looked up when they entered.

Harry froze, and Sean and Sarah paused beside him.

"Er... hi," said Harry meekly.

"Do the Hogwarts students require food?" asked one of the house-elves.

Professor Markan frowned. "No, they don't require food. But are they requesting food? At this hour?"

"I'm sorry, Professor," said Sarah. "I need to speak to Perry."

A few of the house-elves glanced at Perry in confusion. One of them spoke. "Why does Perry's mistress not simply call for him? He will come to her."

Closest to the first-years, Kreacher and Perry and a few others of the older-looking house-elves exchanged glances.

Fortunately for them, Albus had noticed what Sean was holding. "Is that...?"

All eyes turned to Albus, and followed his gaze to the cloak. "Mr. Anderson—" Professor Markan began.

"I know, I know," interjected Sean, and the professor shut his mouth, surprised at having been interrupted. "I was supposed to give this back to you, Albus."

"That's mine?"

"Yeah, it's yours." Sean stepped forward until he reached the edge of the ring of house-elves that surrounded the others. From there, he could go no further, and waited for something to happen. Nothing did.

Finally, Harry blurted out the question. "What's going on here, anyway?" All eyes turned to him, and he cringed beneath the gazes.

The man that stood beside Professor Markan spoke up. "That does not concern you, child."

Sean glanced at Albus. "Well, why can they know but we can't?"

The Professor glanced at Perry, and Perry caught it, turning to Sean. "Perry is sorry, little master, but Master Potter and his friends were chosen to know."

Sean frowned at his family's house-elf. "Why?"

Perry shook his head. "Perry does not know."

Sean looked up at Professor Markan, assuming that he was the guilty party. "Why did you choose them?"

"I didn't," the professor replied, his slightly-bulging blue eyes giving the boy a mild look. "In fact, I don't even know yet why it is that they were chosen to know. We were just getting to that part when you arrived."

Harry crossed his arms and puffed out his chest as much as he could. For a moment, Albus thought his cousin looked strikingly like his father, Dudley Dursley. "Well alright, get on with it then."

The other man frowned, but turned and deferred to the professor's judgement. The Professor glanced from Sean to Harry to Sarah, who was still standing a little ways off and casting glances at her house-elf.

After several seconds, the professor turned to Perry. "Perry, will you please step outside with Miss Anderson and see what she wants?"

Sarah was somewhat curious about what the big secret here was, but she could find that out from her brother later. Right now, she needed to talk to Perry about James.

Once Perry and Sarah had left, the professor glanced back and forth between the two remaining intruders. "Very well," he said finally. He turned to Scorpius. "What was it you had been saying, Mr. Malfoy?"

Scorpius's gaze held on the newcomers for a second longer before he went on with the story.


	31. Uncle George's Arrival

**A/N: Well, that break went by fast. The new semester is upon us, and with it, the next round of work and play and so many things in between. But for you all, here are some moments of quiet urgency to enjoy, as our characters join us in standing in the face of the whirlwind.**

**Diclaimer: Same as always. Also, the idea for George's new invention in this chapter came from those old snapper-bracelets that people used to snap onto each other's wrists, the ones that start out straight and then curl up on contact. This invention is very, very loosely based on that idea.**

**Chapter 31: Uncle George's Arrival**

Rose woke up to an unusual amount of light surrounding her bed. Sitting up, she rubbed her eyes and looked around. She got out of bed and, still in her pajamas, drew the curtain aside and looked around in confusion.

Sunlight filled the dormitory, coming from the open window. The curtains of all the other beds were drawn aside, and the beds were empty and neatly made. Only Allison's bed remained out of sight.

Frowning, Rose made her way across the room and around the curtain. Allison was still fast asleep. "Allison," Rose whispered, gently shaking her.

The other girl's only response was a barely-audible noise from her throat.

"Allison," Rose repeated more loudly, shaking her less gently. Finally Allison's eyelids fluttered and then opened, and she looked up at Rose in confusion. "Wake up, I think we overslept."

Allison looked around her, taking in the unusual amount of light in the room. Getting up, she drew her curtain aside and looked around, just as Rose had done moments before.

Rose quickly returned to her own bed and shut her curtain, changing into her robes. When she drew the curtain aside again, Allison was still standing there in her pajamas, looking only half-awake. "Aren't you going to get dressed?"

Allison frowned, then nodded slowly, and shut her curtain.

"I'm going down to the Great Hall," Rose called through the curtain. "I hope we haven't missed breakfast."

She made her way down quickly through the empty hallways, hoping that the lack of passerby meant that everyone was still down in the Great Hall, rather than already in classes. When she reached the entrance to the hall, her heart sank, and her stomach growled.

The Great Hall was empty. Her gaze lingered on the Gryffindor table, then passed to the Hufflepuff one, then to Ravenclaw, and finally to the Slytherin table. There it froze.

Scorpius sat alone near the center of the table, eating a late breakfast in silence.

Rose glanced at her own table, then back at him. The internal battle raged for a while, until finally she stomped her foot and, slightly angry with herself, cautiously approached the Slytherin table.

He glanced up from his food when she reached him, then looked back down at it. "Hey, Weasley."

She frowned, and turned and looked at her own table on the far side of the room. Then she sighed and turned back to him. "Can't you please call me Rose?"

He shrugged. "It turns out we all slept through breakfast. You, me, Albus, Allison and... those other two."

"Sean and Harry." Her stomach growled again, and just then a second plate of food appeared at the table, right in front of her.

"Kreacher popped in when I arrived here. I told him we would each need a plate when we came down."

"Thank you," Rose replied graciously. Then she hesitated, looking down at the green tablecloth warily.

"The table's not going to bite you. Only the people who usually sit here."

She frowned at him, but was surprised to hear him commenting so dryly about his own house. "You're one of them."

He winced at the remark, then set his fork down delicately. For a couple of seconds, he looked around the empty room, a thoughtful expression on his face. "I think I prefer it like this. Much less noisy. No need to hear other people's stupid comments about people who may be better than them."

She turned and cast her own glance around the room. "To me it just feels lonely." Once again, her gaze lingered on the empty Gryffindor table. When she turned back to him, he was looking at her. "What?"

He shook his head and looked down, but then paused as he was about to pick up his fork. "I don't think you know what it means to feel lonely."

Just then, Sean walked in. "Hey," he called over to them, "why are we sitting over there?"

"We?" Scorpius repeated with a quiet scoff. Rose silenced him with a look as Sean quickly came up to them.

"Figures we would all sleep late, what with how long we were down in the kitchens for last night," said the Ravenclaw. "But why are we at this table?"

"Because I got down here first," Scorpius replied.

"It's not like it was a race," Rose bit back as Sean sat down next to her. Another plate of food appeared in front of him, and he began to eat hungrily.

Scorpius watched the Ravenclaw eat for several seconds, wondering if he had ever learned any table manners. Sean was quite a sloppy eater, and Rose found him to be reminiscent of her father.

An awkward silence fell over the center of the Slytherin table, broken only by the occasional soft clang of a fork against the edge of a plate or the dull thud of a goblet being set back down on the green cloth.

The silence lasted until Harry Dursley strode up beside Scorpius. "What are we all doing here?" he asked.

"Eating breakfast," Scorpius replied curtly.

"Aren't we going to talk to Headmistress McGonagall?" The first-years had taken Professor Markan's advice to not try to talk to the Headmistress until the daytime, especially since they were all so tired by then.

"First we are eating," said Scorpius.

"But..." Harry was anxious to speak to the Headmistress.

"Aren't you hungry?"

"Yes," replied Harry. He sat down beside the Slytherin, and another plate appeared in front of him. Scorpius edged away from him slightly as he began eating.

Rose glanced over at the entrance to the hall, wondering what was taking Allison so long.

* * *

><p>Allison glanced over the railing at the landing that led to the Great Hall. The staircase had moved away from that landing, and she and Albus were now stuck facing the wrong direction.<p>

"Where do we go now?" she asked.

He shrugged. He didn't yet know the school well enough to know alternate pathways from one place to another.

The staircase moved again, and Allison grabbed tightly on to the railing as the stone rumbled beneath her feet. To her dismay, she found that they were moving even farther in the wrong direction.

"Now what?"

Suddenly a thick, red piece of string struck the railing just beside her hand, wrapping around it. She jerked her hand away in horror, watching as the string tightened around the railing. Looking back over the railing, she followed the string down to where a red-haired man was zooming upwards along it.

When the man reached the railing, he grabbed on, and she backed up to the other side of the staircase beside Albus.

Albus's expression changed dramatically when the man himself appeared, leaping nimbly over the railing onto the staircase. "Uncle George!"

The man paused, looking up in surprise. "Albus? Well, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in class?"

Albus's expression changed once more, as a sheepish look crossed his face. "I overslept."

Allison found herself transfixed by the side of the man's face. Where his right ear should have been, there was a gold replica of an ear embedded in his head.

The man caught her staring. "Er..." He brought his hand up to cover the side of his face that was drawing her attention.

"This is Allison," said Albus. Allison snapped out of it and mumbled a quick hello. "What is that?" Albus pointed to the red string George was holding, which had now curled up in his hand on its own power.

"A new invention," George replied. "Haven't decided what to call it yet. Helps for getting up to high places when there are no stairs to climb."

"Or the stairs are just going the wrong way," added Albus, gesturing down at the staircase they were standing on.

"Er, right, though that can only apply to Hogwarts."

Albus's stomach growled rather loudly. He still hadn't eaten breakfast. "I don't suppose we can also use that to get down?"

"Certainly," George replied brightly, keen to show off his new invention once more. He held the curled-up string aloft and looked back down at the landing he had come from. Suddenly, the string shot out from his hand and attached itself to the landing. "Grab on," called George, holding out his other arm. Albus grabbed his hand. Not wanting to be stuck on the staircase by herself, Allison quickly grabbed hold of the strange man's arm, just below the elbow. Suddenly they shot forward, over the railing of the staircase and through the air, zooming downwards over nothing. Allison saw the floor far below, and gripped tighter onto George's arm.

The string was magically curling itself once more, this time around the end attached to the landing, and was pulling them with it. The landing zoomed closer and closer, until George landed on it feet first. Allison let go of his arm and tumbled to the floor beside him, while Albus managed to land on his feet but stumbled forwards several steps.

"Easy there, little ones," said George. "It's a quick landing on this landing." Neither of the children got the joke. "Well alright, you run off to the Great Hall and eat. I've got to find James. I'll catch up with you later, Al."

Albus's stomach growled again, and he waved quickly to his uncle and set off towards the Great Hall. Allison scrambled to her feet and ran after him, not wanting to be left alone with the bizarre man and his wild invention.

* * *

><p>Scorpius was finished eating, and he did not feel inclined to stick around and wait for the others to finish. However, he also did not know what time it was, and therefore did not know what class he was supposed to be going to. More importantly, he thought they should talk to the Headmistress about Professor Zarin soon.<p>

So he waited. Sean finished eating soon after he did, and Rose was beginning to indicate that she was full. Only Harry went on eating, as though he hadn't eaten in a week.

Finally, Albus and Allison entered the hall. "And where were you two?" Scorpius called to them as they approached the Slytherin table.

"We got stuck on the staircase," Albus replied.

"Really?" said Scorpius with one eyebrow quirked. He glanced at Rose, who was frowning at her fellow-Gryffindors. "How come you didn't get stuck on the staircase, Weasley?"

The frown deepened as it shifted to him. "Please call me Rose," she insisted.

"I don't think you've yet called me Scorpius."

Rose looked down at her plate. "Fine, Scorpius."

Scorpius nodded. "Rose."

"Uncle George is here," Albus said to his cousin.

Rose's gaze snapped back to him, and Scorpius scowled. "Really?"

Albus nodded. "He said he was coming. In that letter on my birthday."

"I remember. I forgot it was today. Where is he?"

Albus shrugged. "He's looking for James."

"Why?"

Albus shrugged again. "He said he'd catch up with us later. In the meantime, we've got to talk to the Headmistress anyway."

"How?"

"Well, I'm guessing she's up in her office."

"But we don't have the password."

All the other first-years stared at Rose. They hadn't thought of that.

* * *

><p>"Expelliarmus!"<p>

"Protego!" James shouted. Sarah dodged as her own spell was deflected back at her.

James shifted the wand slightly in his hand. He was growing more used to this wand the more he used it, but it still didn't feel completely right.

"Immobulus!" James froze, and fought with all the magic within him to throw off the spell.

"Expelliarmus!" The wand shot out of his hand, and Sarah caught it. Moments later, James managed to break the freezing charm, but by then it was too late.

"Well done, Miss Anderson," replied Professor Brant, as Sarah returned James's wand with a nod. "The freezing charm does generally prove quite effective for gaining a split-second advantage over the foe, enough to disarm him. The stronger the wizard, the faster he can break the charm."

"But the most powerful wizards don't even get affected by the charm," noted Shane.

Professor Brant nodded. "Unfortunately, powerful wizards tend to be able to develop immunities to many spells, making them much more difficult to defeat. But do not concern yourselves with the notion that any of you will have to face a wizard like that. We have the Ministry's Auror Department for that."

James rolled his eyes. Professor Brant was always saying the same things, teaching and explaining the few things he knew and writing the rest off as magic that the Auror Department could handle. Never had James dreamed he could have such a useless teacher at Hogwarts.

And, as always, the mention of the Auror Department drew attention to James, the son of the most famous Auror in history. Having just lost a duel, he wasn't so keen to have that attention on him at the moment.

"James, would you like to have another go? Try to redeem yourself?"

James's gaze immediately fell on Michaela, who was sitting beside Sarah at the back of the classroom. "Yes, professor."

"Very well, who would like to face him?" But Michaela kept her hand down, simply returning his gaze with a glare of her own.

The Gryffindors and Ravenclaws glanced at each other uneasily. None of them wanted to face James Potter when he so clearly wanted to win.

Finally, Shane raised his hand. "Mr. Thomas," called the professor, "step up here."

Shane got up, keeping his gaze away from James. Only once they were set to begin did he meet his friend's gaze. James wore a surprised frown.

They bowed to each other.

"Immobulus!" James shouted.

"Expelliarmus!" shouted Shane.

James's spell missed, but Shane's struck. Once more, the wand flew out of James's hand, this time away from Shane and towards the professor.

Shane frowned. He hadn't been expecting to win.

James glared at him, and he gave an apologetic glance back.

"Well done." This time it wasn't Professor Brant who spoke. The voice came from the open doorway of the classroom, and everyone turned to find a man with red hair standing there, the light gleaming off of a gold ear on the right side of his head. "My dear nephew, you might want to learn to aim that wand of yours a little better."

James stared at his uncle.

"You're George Weasley!" exclaimed Professor Brant, an expression of horror on his face.

George frowned at the professor for several seconds, then his eyebrows rose. "Edwin Brant, long-time-no-see."

"What are you doing here?" Brant asked stiffly.

"I've come to see my nephew. The better question is, what are _you_ doing here? Surely they haven't given you a teaching position here."

"As a matter of fact, they have," Brant replied, sticking his nose up at George.

George frowned. "Well, then the Headmistress must really have been desperate," he muttered. "Well, no matter, I'll have a talk with her later and we'll get that sorted out."

Brant's eyes widened. "I really don't think that's necessary."

"I think it is," said George. "I have enough nephews and nieces at this school to be concerned about who is teaching here. James, if you will please follow me."

James moved towards his uncle, glancing back at the professor's horrified expression.

Then he glanced towards Michaela, knowing what was soon to come. He was shocked to find that the seat that she had been sitting in minutes before was now empty.

* * *

><p>"So what do we do?" Sean asked. The first-years had sat in silence for several minutes, each wondering what the next step was.<p>

Rose shrugged. "Well, I suppose we go to our classes. We won't be able to talk to the Headmistress until lunch."

"For all we know, lunch may be quite soon," said Scorpius. They still didn't know what time it was.

Rose looked up at the ceiling of the Great Hall, which was supposed to be a simulation of the sky outside. "I would guess we still have at least an hour before lunch. I suggest we try to find our classes in the meantime."

Sean glanced at Harry. "I think we should have Potions right now."

Harry's eyes widened. He clearly didn't want to face Professor Zarin, knowing what they now knew. When Sean stood up, Harry looked at him aghast. "You actually want to go?"

"I think we should."

Harry's expression fell, and after a few seconds he stood up as well. "Fine." Together, the Ravenclaw and the Hufflepuff left the hall, bound for the dungeons.

The Gryffindors and Scorpius glanced at each other. "Come on," said Rose, gesturing for them all to follow her. "We're going up to the Headmistress's office."

"What?" Albus looked at her in shock. "I thought you said we should go to our classes."

"The Sylvarum chose the four of us to learn the truth. Sean and Harry have no part in this. I think it's best to keep them out of whatever is to come."

Albus frowned at his cousin, but Scorpius smiled at her reasoning. "You're right. Why should they come along when they weren't chosen?"

Albus looked away, uncomfortable with his cousin's decision. He saw no reason why they shouldn't let Sean and Harry help.

Nevertheless, he followed his cousin along with Scorpius and Allison as they climbed up towards the entrance to the Headmistress's office.

* * *

><p>"I can't believe they've got a scumbag like that teaching here," George muttered to himself.<p>

James glanced up at his uncle, keeping pace as he led him through the halls of Hogwarts. "What did he do?"

George watched his nephew for a moment out of the corner of his eye. "That's neither here nor there. But I am going to talk to the Headmistress about it."

They turned down another corridor. James looked around and frowned. It did not look like his uncle was leading him towards the Headmistress's office.

"But first," said George, "you and I have something else to discuss."

James's thoughts turned to Michaela. He could not understand how she had simply disappeared from the DADA classroom, especially when his uncle had been standing in the doorway. And no one had noticed her move.

George led him into another hallway. By now, James did not recognize where he was. This school still confounded him every now and then.

George stopped and turned to a blank wall. "Let me see if I remember this correctly." He placed his wand up against the wall and drew it to the side. Then he placed his wand higher up and drew it the other way. Finally, he placed his wand down on the floor against the wall and stepped back.

A white light emanated from the tip of the wand, and spread across the wall. Then the light took on a rectangular shape.

Seconds passed, and then the light disappeared. James was shocked to find that the wall the light had been covering was gone.

George picked up his wand and stepped into the darkness beyond the missing wall, and James followed him.

Perry watched as the wall reappeared behind Mister Potter and his uncle.

He had followed Mistress Sarah's orders, and not done anything to keep Mister Potter away from Miss Black. But he did not understand why Mistress Sarah's orders had changed. He knew that Master Sam still wanted Mister Potter to be kept away from Miss Black.

Perry fought with himself over the conflicting desires of his masters. But he understood Master Sam's wishes better than the orders that Mistress Sarah had given him.

"Perry is sorry, Mistress Sarah," he whispered to himself, "but Perry knows Master Sam's wishes, and does not know why Mistress Sarah no longer wants him to comply with them. Perry must disobey Mistress Sarah's orders. Mister Potter must still be kept away from Miss Black."


	32. The Elf and the Seekers

**A/N: A thousand and one apologies to everyone! I'm sorry it's been so long. School is annoying, the essays that come with it moreso.**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always, whatever that originally was.**

**Chapter 32: The Elf and the Seekers**

"Sarah."

Sarah turned at Michaela's voice, but saw no one. Suddenly, Michaela appeared before her out of thin air, removing what looked like a white headband from around her head.

"Michaela? What is that?"

Michaela glanced at the object and shrugged. "A useful little device for escaping trouble."

"What trouble?"

"I'm going up to Ravenclaw Tower. If you see James, don't let him come anywhere near me."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Michaela, about that..."

But Michaela had put the headband back on and disappeared once more. Sarah looked around for her in vain, not hearing any footsteps to tell which way she had gone.

"Michaela?"

There was no answer. Sarah swore under her breath, and decided she ought to go find James.

* * *

><p>James looked around. The room was small and plain, lit by candelabras on the walls. He wondered if it served any purpose other than as a hiding place.<p>

His uncle turned to him. "What's the name of the student who has my products?"

"Michaela Black."

"Black?" Uncle George didn't sound at all surprised by the name. "Of course it's Black. Where is she?"

"She was in that classroom. She disappeared when you showed up."

"Of course she did."

"You know her?"

Uncle George nodded. "And her brother's here too, no doubt. Do you know where he is?"

"He was also in that classroom."

George frowned. "Got sorted into Gryffindor, did they?"

James nodded.

"Well," said George, "that doesn't surprise me about Marcus. He's a brave boy, not as brash as his sister is. But the little troublemaker... she nearly destroyed half my store once."

That certainly sounded like Michaela.

"Well, let's find her. I need to speak to her."

"She's disappeared, though. I don't know where she's gone."

"That's the easy part."

"Huh?"

"Well, didn't your dad give you that old Marauder's Map that I gave him years ago?"

James's eyes widened. He had completely forgotten about the Marauder's Map. He could have used that so many times against Michaela over the past year. "Yes. It's in my room."

"Well, let's go get it then."

George stood once more in front of the wall they had come through, and once more it disappeared in white light. They strode back out into the hallway and towards Gryffindor Tower.

* * *

><p>"So now what, Weasley?" Scorpius asked. They stood in front of the gargoyle, not knowing the password to get up to the Headmistress's office.<p>

"Please call me Rose!" Rose insisted once more.

"Fine, Rose. What do we do now?"

Rose looked either way down the hallway. "I think all we can do is split up and try to find someone who might know the password."

"And who might know the password?"

Rose shrugged. "A professor, I guess."

Scorpius stared at her. "We're skipping class and you want us to go find a professor?"

Rose frowned at that. "This is more important than a class!"

Scorpius raised his eyebrows. "Are you really the daughter of Hermione Granger?"

Albus couldn't resist a small chuckle at that, which earned him a glare from his cousin. He had to admit that Scorpius was right. The chances of them getting the password any time soon without trouble were very small.

"Let's split up," said Rose. "Allison and I will go one way, you and Albus will go the other."

"Fine, Weasley. Let's go, Potter."

* * *

><p>James and George were about halfway to the Grand Staircase when George stopped walking suddenly and took a step back, and James stopped behind him.<p>

"What is it?"

George reached out a hand and touched the air in front of him. He ran is hand across from side to side, as though he were doing a mime of an invisible box. "Well, this is strange."

James stepped up beside him and reached out a hand. It came into contact with something hard, which he could not see. The pair searched across the invisible obstacle from one side of the hallway to the other, but there was no way around or through it.

"Alright," said George. "There are other ways to get to the staircase. I'm surprising myself with how well I still remember this school."

"Uncle George!"

They both turned. "Rose!" George replied as his niece ran up and hugged him. "How are you?"

"I'm well. How are you?"

"I'm doing alright."

Allison came up beside Rose, and Rose quickly introduced her friend.

"We met before," said George, acknowledging the girl whom he had rescued from the staircase along with Albus earlier.

Allison nodded timidly. She hadn't wanted to encounter this strange man a second time.

"Okay," said Rose, not knowing when he was referring to. "Where are you going?"

"Gryffindor Tower. I haven't been up there since leaving this school."

Rose knew the story of her uncle's pre-graduation departure from the school all too well. "Alright." She turned to her cousin. "You don't know the password for the gargoyle to get up to Headmistress McGonagall's office, do you?"

James shook his head. "You need to see her about something?"

"Yes." She glanced back at her uncle, wanting to spend some time with him. "Well, I guess in the meantime we'll accompany you back to the tower."

Allison glanced at her friend, not liking this idea.

"Alright," said George, "come along, then."

Rose set off in the direction of the Grand Staircase. She turned in confusion when she noticed that her relatives weren't alongside her, and saw that they were still standing there, watching her with surprised expressions. "What?"

George stepped forward to where the invisible wall had been. It wasn't there any more. Walking a few paces further, however, he found it once more. James came up beside him and looked for a way around it.

How had Rose gotten through it?

Behind them, Allison looked on in confusion.

"What are you doing?" Rose asked, watching as her uncle and her cousin seemed to be playing some bizarre mime game in the middle of the hallway. Was this some kind of prank?

George knocked on the air. There was no sound. Allison tried to walk around James past him, but bumped into the wall as well.

From the far side of the wall, Rose stared at the three in utter bewilderment. Walking back up to where they were, she reached out to her uncle, but her hand struck the wall.

How could there now be a wall where she had walked only moments before?

From opposite sides of the wall, Rose and Allison exchanged a long glance. Then Rose turned and set off to find help.

* * *

><p>Albus and Scorpius walked together in silence. Neither had any clue as to how to get the password. Nor did either have any inclination to talk to the other.<p>

Unconsciously, Scorpius was walking in the direction of the dungeons, and Albus let him steer, since he didn't know where they should go.

They were two hallways short of the Potions classroom when they ran into Sean and Harry.

"Professor Zarin's not here," said Sean immediately, assuming that to be the reason that the Slytherin and the Gryffindor were down here.

"What?" Scorpius asked in confusion. What did that have to do with anything?

"He's not?" said Albus, realizing fully what had just been said. "Where is he?"

"He's at the Ministry, with the Headmistress. Apparently, there is some important matter to discuss concerning the school. They will return tonight."

Scorpius and Albus shared a long glance. So much for talking to the Headmistress. Albus also didn't like that Professor Zarin was with her. "Well, we better find Rose and Allison again."

"What class did you just have?" Harry asked.

"Herbology," Scorpius lied quickly.

Sean glanced at Albus. "Don't we have Herbology together?"

"We had to talk to Neville, though," Albus quickly replied, trying to cover for Scorpius's transparency. "I mean Professor Longbottom."

Sean raised his eyebrows. "What could you possibly have wanted to talk to the Herbology Professor about?"

"He's the Head of Gryffindor House, and Professor Zarin is the Head of Slytherin House. Perhaps Professor Longbottom might be able to help us."

Now Scorpius raised his eyebrows at the Gryffindor, while Sean and Harry shared a skeptical glance.

Albus rolled his eyes. "It doesn't matter. Come on, let's go find Rose and Allison."

* * *

><p>"Come on," said George. "There are other ways to the Grand Staircase." He turned and led James and Allison down another passageway, only to bump into another invisible wall. Turning down a third route, they encountered yet another.<p>

James pounded his fist against the wall he couldn't see. "What's going on here?"

George looked down the empty hallway in confusion. What could be doing this?

Allison looked on in horror. "Try a spell!" she screamed, drawing her own wand for emphasis.

"Stand aside, James," said George. Drawing his wand, he pointed it at the invisible barrier. "Reducto!"

There was a loud boom as the spell struck the wall and bounced off of it, followed by a scream. George turned to see Allison covering her head, a small piece of her shattered wand still in her hand.

When the girl straightened and saw what was left of her wand, she started to cry.

George and James exchanged a long glance. James moved over to the girl and bent down. "Are you okay?" he asked quietly.

Allison looked up at him. "He broke my wand!" she cried, pointing the remnant she was still clutching at George. George came over to her as well, and she backed away from him. "Stay away!" Turning, she ran away from them. James and George pursued her away from the invisible wall.

Allison kept running until she reached a dead end. There she stopped, and slid down the wall until she was sitting on the floor, hiding her face in her knees. James and George reached her, and James knelt down in front of her. "It's okay." he said quietly.

"No it's not! He broke my wand!"

"You can get another one," said James. He drew the wand he was carrying from his robes. "In the meantime, you can use this one."

She lifted her head up. By now, the tears had stopped, though her cheeks were still red. She frowned down at the wand. "But that's your wand."

"No, it's not," said James. "Mine was stolen."

"What!" exclaimed George. "Your wand?"

James nodded.

"By Michaela?"

James shook his head. "No, by a Slytherin first-year. I think he just thought it a clever trick."

"Stealing a wand is not a prank," said George. "It's quite serious."

"I'll get it back," said James. He hadn't even been thinking about the boy who took his wand. He had been so focused on Michaela that he'd completely forgotten about him. "In the meantime, you use this." He handed the wand to Allison, who took it tentatively. "And this summer, you can come with me to Ollivander's, and we'll get you a new wand, okay?"

Allison looked up at him for a second, then nodded.

George let out a breath, glad that was settled. He could spare a few galleons for James to buy the girl a new wand this summer. As for the boy who had stolen James's wand, George knew his nephew would find some way to get it back. In the meantime... Michaela.

Turning away from the dead end, he walked forward a few paces, until he encountered yet another invisible wall, right across the hallway that they had just chased Allison down.

They were trapped here.

* * *

><p>Sandra made her way towards the hospital wing, clutching a small pouch in her hand. She hoped Carla was doing better.<p>

Suddenly, a mass of brown hair crashed into her, sending her back against the wall and knocking the pouch out of her hand. Pain shot along her injured side.

"Sorry!"

Sandra looked up at the Ravenclaw seeker, who quickly picked up the pouch and returned it to her. "It's okay." She took back the pouch, rubbing her side gently.

"Are you okay?" the Ravenclaw asked her.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

The girl didn't seem convinced, but she replied, "Okay. Have you by any chance seen James Potter?"

Sandra shook her head, "No, sorry."

The Ravnclaw, who's name Sandra finally remembered was Sarah, looked around. "Okay. I've got to find him." Looking down at the pouch in Sandra's hand, she asked, "What is that, anyway. It seemed to move in my hand when I picked it up."

Sandra looked down at the pouch, and decided to show her fellow seeker. Opening the pouch, she drew out a small, decorated golden ball. She held it up close to Sarah so she could see the colorful designs. "It's called a destiny snitch. It's supposed to lead you to wherever destiny wants you to go." She had gotten it as a gift for Carla.

Sarah stared at it, mystified. She held up her hand. "May I?"

Sandra hesitated, but decided the Ravenclaw wouldn't do anything stupid. "Okay." She placed it in Sarah's hand.

Sarah brought it close to her face, turning it to see the elaborate designs that ran all around the ball.

Suddenly, the snitch came to life in her hand. Little wings sprouted from each side. She tried to curl her fingers around it quickly, but it jerked free before she could get a hold on it, shooting up into the air and off down the hallway.

"Shoot! Sorry, I'll get it."

Sandra watched as the Ravenclaw seeker took off after the snitch, though she couldn't run as fast as she could fly. Sandra took off after it as well, hoping they could corner it in a dead end.

* * *

><p>"Rose!"<p>

She turned to them. "Did you get the password?"

"No," Albus replied, "but we can't talk to the Headmistress right now anyway."

Rose frowned. "Why not?"

"She's at the Ministry," said Scorpius, "with Professor Zarin."

"What?"

"Apparently, there is some important matter concerning the school."

Rose remained silent for several seconds, her gaze passing between the two boys. "That's not good."

Albus shook his head in agreement.

"Where's Allison?" Scorpius asked, looking around.

Suddenly, Rose's eyes widened, and she set off down the hall without a reply. Albus and Scorpius quickly followed after her.

* * *

><p>As students made their way down to the Great Hall for lunch, a tiny golden ball zipped over their heads. Many of them saw the flash of gold and ducked, then dodged out of the way as Sarah and Sandra came charging after it.<p>

The ball flitted around corners, zipping from one hallway to the next, and Sarah struggled to keep it in her sights.

Once they were passed the crowd of students headed for the Great Hall, it became a little easier. Still, the snitch continued on.

Sarah was getting tired. She could not keep running like she could keep flying.

Finally, the snitch began to slow down. It rounded one last corner, coming up against a dead end, and Sarah reached out and grabbed it. Slowing to a stop, she looked at the designs on the destiny snitch once more. They seemed to be moving.

Looking up, Sarah realized she was face to face with none other than James Potter.

The Gryffindor seeker was staring at the snitch in her hand. Sandra came up behind her, and stopped short at the sight of James and the man he was with. A small girl sat back against the wall at the end of the hallway, clutching her knees to her chest.

James reached out towards the snitch in Sarah's hand. Suddenly, his hand struck something invisible, and he placed his palm flat against it. Frowning, Sarah placed her hand along the other side of the wall, feeling along it. It was completely smooth, and appeared to stretch across the entire hallway.

She knew who was responsible for this.

"Perry!" she called.

There was no loud crack this time. The house-elf emerged from behind a suit of armor, far down the hall in the opposite direction. "Yes, mistress!" he called back.

"Come here!"

Now the loud crack came, as Perry apparated directly in front of her.

Sarah tapped the wall. "What is this?"

Perry threw himself on the floor. "Mistress must forgive Perry. Perry has disobeyed her orders." He began banging his head against the stone.

Sarah reached down and forcefully wrenched him off the floor, stopping him from hurting himself. "Why?"

"Because Master Sam wishes that Mister Potter be kept away from Miss Black!"

Sarah looked up at James. He was talking to the man behind the wall. Apparently, this wall was sound-proof.

"I told you to let James go near her."

"But Perry does not understand why Mistress Sarah does not want what Master Sam wants."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Do not interfere anymore with James. You hear me?"

Perry remained silent for a moment. Then he nodded his head. "Perry will obey."

"Thank you. Now remove this wall."

Perry nodded once more. A second later, he disappeared with a loud crack.

Sarah frowned. Nothing appeared to have happened.

"I think you're right," said the man. Sarah turned to him in confusion. She could now hear him, and she had no idea what he and James were discussing.

"James," she said softly. She reached out and grabbed his sleeve, her hand passing right through where the wall had been.

James looked at her, confusion etched across his face. "What happened?"

Sarah shook her head. "That's not important. Michaela's in Ravenclaw Tower."

James frowned. "How did you know—?"

But Sarah shook her head again. "That's also not important." Turning, she handed the destiny snitch back to Sandra. "Here."

"Thanks," Sandra replied, not understanding what was going on. She still wanted to see Carla, and turning, she left the group behind and headed back towards the hospital wing.

"Ravenclaw Tower? She'll have a trap for me up there."

Sarah looked back at him and nodded. He was probably right.

James shared a long glance with the other man. Then the other man looked at the little girl. "She won't spring the trap on her."

James and Sarah looked at the girl. Allison looked up to find them all staring at her, and her eyes widened.

"Allison," James said softly, "there's something I need you to do. It's very important."

Allison said nothing, she simply stared at James in horror. Then finally, hesitantly, she stood up to her full, short height


	33. On the Spiral Staircase

**A/N: Hey all! I'm back! Very, very sorry about the hiatus, but it turned out to be a tough and busy semester. But it's over now, and I'm yours again. Or, at least, my story is.**

**Also, I'm using a different computer now, so the formatting might be a little screwy in this chapter. I'll see what the issues are and correct them for the next chapter.**

**Enjoy! And don't worry too much about the riddles. Especially the second one, since it will come up again much later and be explained more thoroughly.**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 33: On the Spiral Staircase**

Rose had no idea where Allison might have gotten to with James and Uncle George. She looked around, not knowing what to do next.

"Now what?" asked Scorpius.

Rose looked at him and shrugged.

"Well, everyone's down in the Great Hall for lunch," said Albus.

"We practically just ate," Scorpius pointed out.

Albus shrugged. "We haven't got much else to do."

Rose and Scorpius shared a glance. Albus was right, there was nothing else they could do right now. With a sigh, Rose turned towards the Great Hall, following the boys down.

* * *

><p>Sandra looked down at Carla, who was asleep. She seemed to be okay, but Sandra wished the Slytherin girl were awake so that she could be sure.<p>

"Miss Alain, at least let me look at your side now," insisted Madam Bell.

"I'm fine," Sandra replied. She didn't feel completely fine, though. Her side was still stinging a little from when Sarah had knocked her back against the wall earlier.

"Please, you must let yourself heal properly."

"I am. I'm healing fine. Carla's the one that needs your help now."

"There's nothing more I can do for Miss Warrington at the moment. She needs to sleep."

"There's nothing you can do for me either."

Madam Bell said nothing, though she held her disapproving gaze on Sandra. Finally, she turned with a huff, stalking back down between the beds.

* * *

><p>Allison glanced down the hallways in turn. James Potter hadn't told her how to get to Ravenclaw Tower.<p>

She had heard that the entrance to the tower was on the fifth floor, and she now wandered that floor, trying to find her way. She didn't even know what to look for. What was the entrance to Ravenclaw Tower?

A loud clang sounded from down one hallway. She peered down it nervously. Suddenly, Peeves the Poltergeist came flying down the hallway towards her. "Ickle firsty! Ickle firsty!"

Allison stared in horror, then turned and ran. She had encountered Peeves only once before, and that had been with Rose and several others. She had no idea how to get rid of him on her own.

The poltergeist pursued her. She ran from one hallway to the next, making as many turns as she could to try to lose him. He remained hot on her trail.

"Ickle firsty! Stop running ickle firsty! Peeves wants to have some fun!"

"Go away!" Allison shouted back at him. She turned and saw a spiral staircase. She started to run up it, but Peeves ascended up the center of the spiral and floated in front of her, stopping her in her tracks.

"Ickle firsty. What are you doing here ickle firsty?"

"Go away!" Allison shouted again. She thought about turning and running back down the stairs, but she knew the poltergeist could easily cut her off again on the spiral.

"Peeves doesn't want to go away. Peeves wants to have some fun with this ickle firsty."

"The Baron is on his way, Peeves," said a third voice. The girl and the poltergeist turned simultaneously to see the ghost of a woman floating above them in the center of the spiral. "You don't want to be here when he arrives."

Peeves's eyes widened, but nevertheless he retorted, "Am I to believe you, Grey Lady? How should you know he is coming?"

"You know that I know, Peeves. He is coming."

Peeves crossed his translucent arms. "Sure," he replied defiantly.

"Are you willing to risk being here when he arrives?"

Peeves arms fell, and he looked down at Allison, then back at the ghost. "Hmph!" With an abrupt turn, he disappeared through the wall.

The ghost floated down, close to Allison. "And what is a young Gryffindor doing on the steps of Ravenclaw Tower?"

Allison's eyes widened, and she looked up the staircase. She had found the tower without realizing it. "I need to find someone there."

The Grey Lady looked skeptical. "I doubt you'll be able to get in. Such a young Gryffindor doesn't have the wit to enter the tower." With that, the ghost floated back upwards and disappeared from sight.

Allison frowned, wondering what she had meant. She didn't know if she needed a password to enter the tower or not. The Ravenclaw girl hadn't mentioned that she would need one.

Moving up the stairs, she reached a door with a bronze knocker designed as an eagle's head. As she reached up to touch it, it spoke, and she withdrew her hand quickly.

_"Another brave young mind approaches,_

_What strange passerby we have._

_A pause in a long journey,_

_Minutes pass to save._

_If you are feeling tired,_

_What is it then you do?_

_A long road is yet ahead and still_

_The minutes pass by you."_

Allison frowned. What was this? It sounded like a riddle, yet at the same time not. There was only one question in it, and that was only a small part of it.

"If I'm feeling tired I rest," said Allison.

Nothing happened. Allison wondered what she needed to do.

Minutes passed. Allison sat down, not knowing how to get into the tower. Sitting back against the wall, she waited for something to happen.

* * *

><p>Carla didn't awaken, despite Sandra willing her to. Finally, the Hufflepuff gave up, and decided she would return later.<p>

Gently, she placed the pouch containing the destiny snitch on the nightstand beside the bed, then turned and walked softly out the Hospital Wing.

Madam Bell watched her go, still frowning. She wished the girl would let her check her side. She was certain she could not yet be fully healed, and was still in danger of re-injuring herself.

* * *

><p>Harry Potter left Corner Industries, shaking his head. He still could not meet with Mr. Black.<p>

Apparating back to the Ministry entrance, he returned to the Auror Department. He was feeling Teddy's absence with increasing heaviness.

By now, he had decided. He would return to the school tonight, as it would be the full moon. If Teddy was a werewolf, Harry was fairly certain he would catch him there, where Victoire was.

In the meantime, he had little to do. Entering his office, he sat down behind his desk, waiting for the next adventure to arrive.

"Hello, Harry." He turned. He couldn't believe he hadn't noticed the woman sitting on the small couch in the corner of his office. He had decided it would be a good idea to have a couch in his office for more casual reunions, such as visits from Ginny, and had placed it in the corner, so that the rest of his office maintained the appearance of being relatively business-like.

"Hermione! What are you doing here?"

Hermione was sitting with her legs crossed, one hand fiddling idly with the Sylvar amulet on its chain around her neck.

"I just stopped by to say hi," she said.

"Are you okay?" he asked. She didn't quite look alright.

She shrugged. "Fine." She stopped fiddling with the amulet, uncrossing her legs and placing her hands in her lap.

"What's wrong?" he asked, not believing her. Getting up, he walked over and sat beside her on the couch.

"I wish there was a way to project the memories in this to other people."

Harry looked at her for a moment, then it dawned on him. "To me? Or to your parents?"

She couldn't resist a small smile. "You catch on quick."

"Not as quick as you."

The smile widened.

"If anyone can find how to project those memories, Hermione, it's you."

"I've tried using a pensieve," she said. "They simply don't understand it, and thus it can't work for them."

Harry had encountered this before. Muggles couldn't see into pensieves. For some reason, the magical technology didn't work with non-magical people. "You'll find the answer."

She sighed. "I hope so, Harry."

They sat in silence for several seconds, before Harry spoke. "Do you have some free time? Want to go grab something to eat?"

"I think right now I just need some coffee."

"Coffee it is, then." He stood up, then offered his hand to help her up. She accepted it, and together they left the Auror Department.

* * *

><p>"Are you okay?"<p>

Allison looked up. She hadn't noticed the boy come up the stairs. "Yes."

The boy noticed the Gryffindor badge on her robes. "What are you doing up here? This is Ravenclaw Tower."

"I know," said Allison. "I need to find someone here though."

"I see. And let me guess: you can't solve the riddle to get into the common room."

She shook her head, standing up. Her muscles felt stiff, and she wondered how long she'd been sitting there for. She hadn't been keeping track of the time.

The boy stood quite a bit taller than her, and she guessed he was about the same age as James Potter, a third-year.

"Well, let's see what riddle it gives me." He reached out and struck the knocker, but nothing happened. "I guess it wants you to solve your riddle first."

"But I can't!"

"What was it?"

She thought about it, and realized she couldn't even remember the riddle properly. "I don't remember. Something about being tired."

"I see." The boy frowned, thinking hard. "Step away from the knocker." He stepped back several steps, down to the third step on the staircase. She retreated along with him. Then he stepped up to the knocker, gesturing for her to stay back. He struck it once more, and this time it gave him a riddle.

_"The walker does wander, and the follower follows._

_The misser is missing, and the seeker feels sorrow._

_What misses the misser the sister does seek._

_But what seeks the follower, wondereth we."_

Allison had never heard a stranger-sounding riddle. The boy was silent for a long time. Then, softly, he muttered, "Very funny."

From within his robes, he pulled out a tiny piece of parchment and a miniature quill. He began to write without ink, and the quill appeared to produce its own.

He scribbled for a while, then stared at what he had written.

Then he turned to her. "What's your name?" he asked.

"Allison."

Allison?" he repeated. A far-away look appeared in his gaze as it held on her. This lasted for a few seconds, before he came to and turned back to his parchment. He wrote down some more, then stared at the writing again.

"Alli," he whispered. "Ally. An ally." He briefly glanced up at the eagle head, but didn't seem surprised when it made no move. There was more to it than that.

"The walker seeks..." He pulled out a second piece of parchment and began writing on it.

Finally he stopped and looked at it again. "The walker follows the ally, the misser seeks the sister, and in seeking feels sorrow. The follower seeks... the missing sister."

He looked up at the eagle head again. Nothing happened. He waited a few seconds, then looked back down at the parchment.

Finally the eagle spoke. "Perceptive," it said tersely, then swung aside to reveal the Ravenclaw Common Room.

The boy chuckled. "Well, that's not the full answer it was looking for, but it's enough." He stepped through the doorway, and Allison quickly followed, not wanting the door to shut again. "You must be looking for Michaela Black."

"Yes," said Allison. "How did it know?"

"It knows everything that the school knows. And the school knows quite a bit. It hears a lot."

Allison frowned at the reply. The school hears? Since when do schools have ears?

"As for how I knew," said the boy, "I'm the walker. Andrew Walker. 'The Walker does Wander.' Just rearrange the letters and you get my name. That's how I knew it was a name game."

"And I'm the ally," said Allison.

Andrew nodded. "Exactly. I came up after you, so I followed you up here. But you're the follower for following me inside."

Allison frowned. The riddle had been made before she followed him inside. She shook her head, guessing it was simply obvious that she would be following him in once he opened the door. "But what about the other part, about the misser and the sister?"

Andrew frowned, and shook his head. "Thats... more complicated. Find me some other time and I'll tell you. But Michaela Black wasn't at lunch today, and you said you were up here looking for someone. It made sense to me that a Gryffindor would be looking for another Gryffindor."

Allison nodded, impressed. He was clearly very smart.

Andrew looked around the common room. "Well, I don't see Michaela Black here."

Allison looked around. She liked this common room, with all its blue decor. She particularly liked the stars on the ceiling.

Looking down, she found herself standing on something. A black band lay across the midnight-blue carpet, with three golden Ws on it. On top of it lay a thin, translucent film, upon which she was standing.

Andrew knelt down and looked closely at the band. "I don't know what this is." Reaching out, he touched the film that covered it. It was hard and immovable.

Michaela Black was clearly not here, but Allison had a feeling she should tell James Potter about this band, if a Ravenclaw didn't know what it was doing in the Ravenclaw Common Room.

* * *

><p>"Albus!"<p>

Albus turned, along with Rose and Scorpius, as Sean and Harry Dursley ran up to them.

"We have flying now," Sean said to Albus.

"And we have Herbology," Harry added to Scorpius.

Scorpius winced. He had no intention of walking down to the greenhouses with this Hufflepuff. "Yeah."

Albus glanced at Rose, who was nodding at Sean. "Alright, we should go."

Scorpius frowned at them as they departed, then looked around for any Slytherins to walk down to the greenhouses with. He spotted Rachel Vicsen and Vera Sinley, and changed his mind as soon as he saw the obnoxious looks on their faces. "Let's go," he said to Harry, and began walking to the greenhouses as quickly as he could.

It was a warm day outside, the warmest yet that spring. Feeling invigorated by the heat, Scorpius began running to the greenhouses, leaving Harry behind. When he entered, he realized he was the first student there.

"Welcome, Mr. Malfoy," said Professor Longbottom in his usual soft, almost hesitant-sounding voice. "I'm happy to see you arrive so enthusiastically."

"Er... hi Professor," replied Scorpius. He had never spoken to Professor Longbottom one-on-one before. The Professor was widely made fun of in Slytherin house, and though Scorpius didn't participate in the teasing, he realized that the professor did in fact have many of the... weaknesses ...that earned him such a bad reputation among the Slytherins.

Neville watched as the boy watched him. He couldn't help but feel hesitant around the son of Draco Malfoy, though he recognized that this boy seemed far more humble than his father had been at that age. He still hadn't forgotten all the torment that Draco had put him through during his early years at Hogwarts. "You may have a seat, Mr. Malfoy."

Scorpius walked over to one of the benches and sat down, now regretting having run here and arriving so early.

Seconds passed, feeling like minutes, and Scorpius wondered what was taking Harry so long. Professor Longbottom simply watched him, and he felt himself being analyzed by the Head of Gryffindor House.

Scorpius remembered what Albus had said before, about how Professor Longbottom might be able to help them. Scorpius knew he had just said it as part of his feeble lie to Sean and Harry after they ditched them, and that it was as ridiculous as it sounded. But maybe...

Just then, Harry walked in, and the tension broke as the Hufflepuff greeted the Herbology Professor happily. Scorpius let his ridiculous train of thought pass from his mind.

* * *

><p>"Where are we going?" Albus asked Sean. The Ravenclaw had hurried ahead and was now leading him and Rose in completely the wrong direction.<p>

"I want to use my own broom for the lesson," said Sean.

Albus glanced at Rose. They were detouring all the way up to Ravenclaw Tower so that Sean could get his broom?

"I can get my sister's for you if you want to use it."

"Er... no thanks," said Albus. He hardly knew Sarah Anderson, and certainly didn't feel comfortable using her broom.

As they rounded a corner, he was surprised to find his brother and uncle leaning against the wall. "James!"

"Albus, what are you doing here?"

Albus glanced briefly at Sean, then shrugged.

"What are you doing here?" Rose asked James.

James glanced down the hallway, and Albus could see the base of a spiral staircase.

Just then, Allison appeared, running down the stairs. They all turned to look at her, and she stopped.

James quickly moved towards her. Lowering his voice, he asked. "Is Michaela up there?"

Allison shook her head. "No, but there's a black thing on the floor, with three big Ws on it."

James's eyes widened. He remembered this device: she had used it against him on Halloween.

So that was the trap. Or, at least, the beginning of it...

"Allison!" Rose came running up to her friend. "What's going on?"

"James wanted me to look for Michaela Black in Ravenclaw Tower."

Rose frowned up at her cousin. "Why couldn't you go looking for Michaela Black yourself?"

"Because Allison here was able to find the trap that she set for me, without getting hurt by it."

Rose's frown deepened. James had used her friend like a pawn. With a huff, she stormed away from him, up the spiral staircase. Allison glanced at Albus and Sean, who set off after Rose, and she followed.

At the top of the staircase, Rose encountered the bronze eagle knocker.

_"'Tis a day the brave do walk so far,_

_So many up here yet no war._

_What may begin we may yet know,_

_But 'tis for you to onward go._

_If you wish to pass then answer me,_

_Since your mind is sharp I see,_

_What part of the bird flies not in the sky,_

_Swims across the sea and yet remains dry?"_

"A shadow," replied Rose after only a moment's hesitation.

"You are indeed quite sharp." The door swung open. Coming up behind her, Sean was surprised by how fast she had gotten the riddle.

Rose stepped forward into the common room, and the other three followed. Suddenly, everything was plunged into shadow.

"What's going on?" Sean asked, looking around, unable to see anything but the three Gryffindors.

"Not again," Albus muttered, remembering Halloween. He had seen the band a moment before Rose had stepped on it. He didn't know how to stop it.

There was a sound like wind blowing against heavy curtains, and then Albus felt a chill. He drew his wand.

A jet of purple light shot at Allison out of nowhere. She screamed and ducked. Another jet appeared, this time aimed at Sean.

"Protego!" He shouted. A thick silvery haze appeared in the darkness in front of him. It wasn't a proper shield, but the spell disappeared upon striking it.

More purple lights shot at them, as well as spells of red and blue. The first-years dodged and blocked.

Then, from beyond the darkness, they heard two shouts simultaneously. One was the voice of Uncle George, saying some spell. Above that rang a girl's voice, shouting "Stupefy!"

The first-years saw a jet of red light, brighter than the rest, sail high over their heads. At that same moment, a jet of gold light landed at Rose's feet. The three golden Ws on the band lit up as the darkness dissipated. The stunning spell struck Uncle George, sending him tumbling back down several stairs.

Running up beside his uncle as the spell struck, James spotted Michaela hovering on a broom in front of an open window of the common room. She shot him a quick glare before disappearing through the window.

"That's my broom!" Sean shouted. He ran up to the window, and saw Michaela fly straight upwards and disappear over the top of the tower. "That's Sarah's friend. What's she doing?"

James turned and saw his uncle get back to his feet, having quickly thrown off the effects of the spell despite the fall that came with it. Then he turned back and looked at the young Ravenclaw. "I need another broom!"

"She has mine!" Sean exclaimed. "I can't get another."

"You said Albus could use your sister's," Rose reminded him.

Sean grimaced and shrugged. "I forgot it's in her room. I can't get to it."

James glared at the good-for-nothing little boy, then turned and began running back down the stairs. He had to get his own broom.

"Wait!" George shouted, running after his nephew. He grabbed hold of James's arm. "She'll be waiting for you."

"I know!" said James, shaking off George's hand and continuing down the stairs.

George ran down and stopped him again. "Wait for the nighttime. She won't see you coming in the dark."

"I can use the cloak. She won't see me coming anyway."

"She'll see your broom! James, just wait!"

James turned and glared at his uncle.

"You can keep tabs on her with the Marauder's Map. If I know her, she'll stay on top of the tower, with some trap laid out for you. But if she goes anywhere else, you'll know, and you can ambush her after dark."

James held his glare, anxious to get after her. But his uncle was right. She had a decisive advantage when she knew he was coming. She wouldn't be so sure if he waited until nightfall, and then he would be able to sneak up on her.

* * *

><p>"You look tense."<p>

"I look tense?" He looked up at her, surprised. Here it was she whom he had been trying to comfort. They were sitting in her favorite Muggle coffee-shop on Monmouth Street in London, each with an empty cup on the table between them.

"I've seen that look on you many times, Harry. Right before one of our battles, you had that same look. Is something about to happen?"

"Nothing, Hermione." He thought of all the times she had fought alongside him. But she had too much else to worry about now.

"You're lying."

"It's different this time."

"Why?"

He looked up, recognizing the look in her eyes as easily as she recognized the look in his. He couldn't lie to her when she was this alert. "Because it's Teddy."

She frowned. "Teddy?"

Harry nodded.

"What's happened?"

"I'm not exactly sure. But he's disappeared... and a werewolf has appeared."

"But Teddy isn't—"

"I know. But he's missing."

"So why do you look ready for a battle?"

"Because tonight is the full moon. And Victoire is at Hogwarts."

Hermione grimaced. "You're right. If he were a werewolf, he would..."

Harry nodded.

Hermione remained silent for a little. Then she began softly, "When Teddy was little, I did some research."

Harry chuckled. "Well there's a surprise."

She shot him a look, but cracked a smile. Then she continued. "Even though he wasn't born a werewolf, since his father was one he still could... eventually become one."

Harry frowned. "How?"

"Something that made him really angry. He had to have become really, really upset about something for this to have happened. More than even a teenager would typically get upset about something."

Harry quirked a brow, remembering his teenage years. "That's a lot of anger."

"That's why I didn't bother to worry about it," said Hermione. "It seemed so unlikely that that would ever happen. I mean, we pretty much gave him a family, even though he lost his own at so young an age."

"Still, I wish you had told me."

She nodded. "I should have. Especially when he and Victoire started becoming serious. A boy that grew up without a family of his own would be very likely to cling to any source of love he could find. If something very bad happened with Victoire..."

"It would upset him... a lot," Harry finished for her.

Hermione looked at him. "I'm sorry. I should have told you."

"It's okay. It was very unlikely. But I have to get to Hogwarts." He stood up.

She stood up as well. "I'm coming with you."

He knew that was coming. "Not this time. You've got too much else to worry about. Besides... it's Teddy."

Her shoulders slumped, but she knew this was not her fight. "Okay. But take care of yourself."

"I will, as always."

She stepped around the table and hugged him tightly.

Caught between them, the Sylvar Amulet glowed, and suddenly they were both caught in a flashback.

They stood in a small, dark room with two doors. One door was blocked by black flames, the other by purple ones. In the center of the room stood a table with seven bottles of various shapes and sizes. Beside this table, a very young Hermione strode back and forth, pointing at each of the bottles in turn and muttering softly to herself. An also-very-young Harry stood off to the side, watching her.

[[_At last, she clapped her hands. "Got it," she said. "The smallest bottle will get us through the black fire—toward the Stone." Harry looked at the tiny bottle._

_"There's only enough there for one of us," he said. "That's hardly one swallow." They looked at each other. "Which one will get you back through the purple flames?"_

_Hermione pointed at a rounded bottle at the right end of the line._

_"You drink that," said Harry. "No, listen, get back and get Ron. Grab brooms from the flying-key room, they'll get you out of the trapdoor and past Fluffy—go straight to the owlery and send Hedwig to Dumbledore, we need him. I might be able to hold Snape off for a while, but I'm no match for him, really."_

_"But Harry—what if You-Know-Who's with him?"_

_"Well—I was lucky once, wasn't I?" said Harry, pointing at his scar. "I might get lucky again."_

_Hermione's lip trembled, and she suddenly dashed at Harry and threw her arms around him._

_"Hermione!"_

_"Harry—you're a great wizard, you know."_

_"I'm not as good as you," said Harry, very embarrassed, as she let go of him._

_"Me!" said Hermione. "Books! And cleverness! There are more important things—friendship and bravery and—oh Harry—be careful!"_

_"You drink first," said Harry. "You are sure which is which, aren't you?"_

_"Positive," said Hermione. She took a long drink from the round bottle at the end, and shuddered._

_"It's not poison," said Harry anxiously._

_"No—but it's like ice."_

_"Quick, go, before it wears off."_

_"Good luck—take care."_

_"GO!"_

_Hermione turned and walked straight through the purple fire._

_Harry took a deep breath and picked up the smallest bottle. He turned to face the black flames._

_"Here I come," he said, and he drained the little bottle in one gulp._]](PS, p.230-1)

The memory ended there, and they were back in the coffee-shop. Simultaneously, they quickly stepped away from each other, sharing an embarrassed glance.

"That was before the first battle," said Hermione softly. Harry could hear the nostalgia in her voice. Things had been so much simpler back then—at least for her. Even with the threat of Voldemort overhead, at least she had had her family intact.

"The first of many," Harry added.

"You don't think something new is starting, do you?"

"No." So many strange things had been happening lately. But it had been a long time since any major evil had emerged in the Wizarding World.

She nodded. "Just take care of yourself, Harry."

"I will. See you soon." With that, Harry turned and strode out of the coffee-shop.

Hermione watched him leave, then watched the door he had disappeared through for a few seconds. Then she opened her purse and briefly rummaged through it, pulling out a few pounds and leaving them on the table. Closing her purse and composing herself, she strode out through the same door Harry had just vanished through.

At the table behind theirs, unnoticeable with his back turned, William Truit finally allowed himself a brief glance over his shoulder, ensuring that they were gone. Then he looked down at the napkin in front of him, on which he had scribbled down several notes from the conversation he had just overheard. "Well, this is very interesting," he muttered to himself. "Very, very interesting."

It had been a long time since the Daily Prophet had gotten any meaningful news from the life of Harry Potter. Finally, the so-called Hero of the Wizarding World was getting himself into trouble again. This would make for quite an entertaining article.


	34. Moonrise

**A/N: You know a chapter was written at awful hours of the night when it takes longer to edit than it took to write. Really sorry about such a delay right on the heels of saying I would be able to post more often again. But anyway, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 34: Moonrise**

Harry landed in Hogsmeade Village and dismounted from his firebolt. It was mid-afternoon, and there was still a while yet before sunset and the rise of the full moon. He wanted to talk to Victoire, and find out what had happened with Teddy.

He took a quick look around the village. It looked much the same as it had the first time he had come here during his Hogwarts years. So many evils had passed through here, and it had even been occupied by Death Eaters during the last year of the war, and yet the village remained as it had been, as though nothing had ever happened.

Looking up at the castle, Harry noted much the same consistency. He remembered being eleven years old, sitting in a boat with Hagrid, Ron and Hermione and looking up at the castle for the first time. It too looked the same now as it had then, but Harry knew that always within the castle changes were happening at a lightning pace.

And though he couldn't see it right now, he knew there was one feature of the castle grounds that hadn't been there when he first arrived. He knew that near the shore of the lake, a white marble tomb was gleaming in the sunlight.

How he wished he could speak to Dumbledore now.

Dumbledore? Harry turned slowly and looked at the village tavern, the Hog's Head. He waked towards it, and opened the door. A young barmaid sat behind the counter, and when she saw who had entered, her eyes widened. "Mr. Potter!"

There were only a few customers present, but they all turned to look upon hearing the name. The tavern was perhaps slightly cleaner than it had been during Harry's Hogwarts years, but not much. There was still dirt everywhere.

Harry walked quickly up to the barmaid. "Is Mr. Dumbledore here?"

She nodded. "You know he can't leave here anymore. He doesn't have the strength."

"Is he awake?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. But you can go up and find out for yourself, you know he won't mind it."

Harry nodded and thanked her with a silver sickle, then opened the door at the back of the tavern, shutting it softly behind him. Making his way up the old, creaking stairs, he knocked quietly on the door.

"Enter!" said a hoarse voice.

Harry opened the door and looked inside. On a plush chair sat a very old man. His long white hair had thinned to wisps, as had the darker hair of his beard. His blue eyes had lost much of their luster, and it seemed that his frame had shrunken as well.

Aberforth Dumbledore had by now surpassed the age that his brother had reached by more than ten years, but he clearly did not have many left.

"Harry," said the hoarse voice. "How are you?"

"I'm well, sir. How are you?"

"How am I? How do I look?"

Harry forced himself to crack a smile. "You look okay."

The old man looked at him skeptically. "Well, I'm alive."

Harry smiled for real this time, and sat down on the only other chair in the room that was still intact, though it looked ready to fall apart soon as well.

"So, what catastrophe is occurring that brings you to Hogsmeade once more?"

Harry looked over towards the dirty window, through which he could see a small part of the castle. "A werewolf."

"Werewolves? Well, you've dealt with much worse before."

"It's different this time," said Harry.

"Why's that?"

"It's Teddy Lupin."

The old man frowned, as though he couldn't remember who Teddy Lupin was. Then, after several seconds, he said, "Teddy isn't supposed to be a werewolf. He's a metamorphmagus, like his mother."

"I know. But Hermione did some research. Apparently if something happened that upset Teddy a great deal, he could become a werewolf, because of who his father was."

"Well, that's news to me. But I never studied werewolves."

"Last year, he began dating my niece, Victoire. If something bad happened with her, it could have upset him enough."

"I see." The man shakily brought a heavily-wrinkled hand up to stroke the thin wisps of his beard. "The trials and tribulations of youngsters."

"I'm hoping to speak to her before sunset tonight. Tonight is the full moon, which means Teddy may come for her as a werewolf."

Aberforth nodded. "Your niece is in her seventh year at Hogwarts, isn't she?"

"Yes."

"Then perhaps you shouldn't try to speak with her about this. You already know what happened, and she has much else to worry about at the end of her Hogwarts years."

"Yeah, I guess that's true," said Harry. He hadn't attended his seventh year at Hogwarts, so he didn't know personally what the last year was like, though he remembered how stressed Ginny had been during her final year. Aberforth was probably right. He wouldn't bother Victoire when he was already fairly certain of what had happened.

"Well," said Aberforth, "since you're not going up to the castle so soon to talk to your niece, perhaps you can stay a while and tell me what else is going on outside of this miserable tavern." He seemed to be gaining energy from the conversation. Having someone to talk to was allowing him to ignore the burden of his age for a little while.

"Certainly, sir," Harry replied, getting comfortable in the old chair. He could afford to spend some time keeping an old man company.

* * *

><p>Outside the castle, the Sun fell through the sky. James stood in the Gryffindor Common Room, looking out the window that faced Ravenclaw Tower. At this distance he couldn't see her on top of the tower, though the Marauder's Map indicated that she was still up there.<p>

In his other hand, he held what appeared to be one half of his broom. The invisibility cloak, which he had taken from Albus's dormitory, was wrapped around the other half, and James was careful to keep the missing half between himself and the window, so no one that passed behind him would notice that half the broom was invisible.

"James? Are you okay?"

James glanced back over his shoulder. "Yes, Laura, I'm alright."

She walked up to him and put her hand on his shoulder, turning him towards her. "Did Michaela do something?"

James sighed. Laura was one of his oldest friends, and of course she could tell quite easily when something was troubling him. "I'm okay, Laura, really."

She nodded, glancing towards the window. It was then that she noticed the half of a broom that he was holding. "What happened to your broom?"

His eyes widened, and he quickly tried to hide the half-invisible broom behind him. She raised her eyebrows, and he sighed. Unwrapping the invisibility cloak from around the broom, he let her observe it.

"You never told me you had an invisibility cloak."

"I'm not in the habit of telling anyone about this."

She nodded, still looking at the cloak, then looked around her. "Then hide it better. Here comes Pearl."

James stuffed the cloak in his robes, and looked up towards Pearl, who was descending the staircase from the girls' dormitories. The girl refused to look at him, keeping her eyes fixed on Laura.

"We're going down to the Great Hall," said Laura. "You're welcome to join us."

"No," said Pearl loudly, still not looking at James, "he's not."

James nodded. "Thanks, but I'm okay up here. I'll head down in a little bit."

Laura nodded, and with one last glance at the place in his robes where the cloak was hidden, turned and made for the portrait hole, Pearl following anxiously.

James turned back towards the window and looked at the darkening sky. "Almost time," he whispered to himself.

* * *

><p>Sandra once again found herself outside the hospital wing. She simply couldn't think about anything else right now. She had to know that Carla would be alright.<p>

Entering, she found Carla still asleep. Madam Bell was in her office, and didn't notice the visitor enter. Sandra went over and sat down beside the injured girl.

Seconds later, the door to Madam Bell's office slammed shut. Sandra looked up, and heard the sounds of Madam Bell frantically trying to open the door.

Turning, she found herself face-to-face with Flint, who leveled his wand at her.

"Get out of my way." The Slytherin's voice was low and threatening.

"What do you want?" Sandra asked warily, not moving from her position between Flint and Carla.

"To make her pay."

"She has nothing to pay for. She saved me."

"A pathetic weakness. She betrayed her team. She betrayed Slytherin."

"I won't let you hurt her," said Sandra, drawing her own wand.

Flint didn't wait for her to be ready. "Crucio!"

Pain shot through her body, and she screamed, falling to the floor.

Flint held her under the curse for several seconds, then lifted it. Sandra lay on the floor, the pain still lancing through her before concentrating in her injured side.

"Now get out," Flint growled.

Sandra lifted her wand towards him. "Stupefy." The spell hit home, sending him flying back against the wall.

She got to her feet, her side throbbing worse than ever. The hospital wing echoed with the sound of Madam Bell pounding on the door she was trapped behind.

Sandra aimed her wand at the door. "Aloha—." Her wand shot out of her hand, and flew into the hand of Flint, who was back on his feet.

She dove at him, catching him in the chest with her uninjured shoulder. He clearly wasn't expecting the physical force, but was quick to react to it, flipping her over onto her back.

"You shouldn't have done that." He aimed both wands down at her.

Suddenly, a buzzing sound caught her attention. A glint of gold passed between their faces, distracting Flint from the girl that he had at his mercy. Sandra's lunge at Flint had shaken the nightstand, knocking over the pouch, and the destiny snitch had fallen out and come to life.

Flint stared at the unusual snitch that hovered in front of him. Sandra quickly seized her wand back from him, pushing him off of her.

The snitch zipped off, out of the hospital wing. Flint followed it with his eyes.

"You want it? Go get it." Sandra said in a low voice. She wasn't sure that she could out-duel the sixth-year Slytherin. She had never experienced a real, non-mediated duel before.

Flint continued to watch the snitch. He cast a quick, hate-filled glance back at the sleeping Carla, then set off after it.

Now Sandra had her advantage. She went after him.

* * *

><p>Harry landed atop the Astronomy Tower, looking down at the grounds below him. It was almost sunset.<p>

He couldn't resist casting a quick glance towards a certain edge of the tower. He still remembered it as though it were yesterday: the green light striking Albus Dumbledore, his body tumbling over the edge and down to the grounds far below.

Shaking the memory from his mind, he looked around once more. For a moment, he thought he saw a shadow atop Ravenclaw Tower, but when he looked again, there was nothing. At this distance, he couldn't really see the top of the tower too clearly in the twilight anyway.

But when the werewolf appeared, if it appeared, it would be on the grounds below, not on one of the other towers.

Harry settled himself down, and watched as the Sun began to dip below the horizon.

* * *

><p>Victoire felt someone's gaze on her, but in the increasing crowd in the Great Hall, she couldn't tell where it was coming from. Theo, for his part, appeared to be fixated by something at the entrance to the hall. Following his gaze, she saw that Laura Corner had just entered, accompanied by her friend Pearl.<p>

He watched her as she sat down at the Gryffindor table, and continued to stare. Then he stood up.

"Where are you going?" Kevin asked, concerned.

"To talk to Laura." Theo moved away from the Ravenclaw table and began walking along the aisle.

"What? No." Kevin got up as well and went after his friend.

Victoire decided to follow them, wanting to know what would happen.

Theo walked around to the Gryffindor table, until he was standing behind her. He cleared his throat, but her name still came out as somewhat of a gasp. "Laura."

She turned and looked up at him. "Yes?"

Victoire saw Kevin's hand shoot out of his pocket and up to the back of his friend's neck, physically pulling him away from the Gryffindors. When he removed his hand, something pink shown on Theo's neck.

Laura and Pearl were looking at the two strangely, as were the rest of the Gryffindors nearby.

"Er..." Theo sounded quite bewildered. He turned to Kevin. "What?"

"Come on, mate," said Kevin, guiding Theo away from the Gryffindor table and back towards their seats.

Victoire followed, looking at her boyfriend strangely. Once they were seated, with Theo glancing back and forth between Laura and Kevin in confusion, she turned to him. "What's in your pocket?"

"What?"

"That pink stuff."

He stared at her, his eyes widening. She reached for his robes. If he wouldn't tell her, she would find out for herself.

He grabbed her hands, keeping them away from his robes. Then an awful scream sounded from behind her.

* * *

><p>"It's time," James whispered to himself. The Sun had disappeared below the horizon.<p>

Making sure he was alone in the common room, he threw the cloak over himself. Then, mounting his broom, he lifted off and flew out the window into the darkening sky.

Just above the horizon in the east, the full moon glowed, as bright as a warning beacon.

* * *

><p>The Ravenclaws and Slytherins stared in horror at the girl that was now writhing on the floor between their tables. None of them had any idea what was going on.<p>

Before their very eyes, she began to change. Her skin paled, then turned gray. Hair sprouted all over her body. Claws grew on her fingers. Her face lengthened.

Soon, what they were looking at was as much a wolf as it was a human.

The werewolf stood up and immediately looked at Victoire. Then it threw its head back and let out a loud, sharp howl.

* * *

><p>Harry perked up. He had been waiting for that exact sound. But the direction from which the sound came made his blood run cold.<p>

Looking down over the edge of the tower, he saw the light through the high windows of the Great Hall, through which the sound had come. Jumping on his broom, he sped downwards, skidding on the sloping roof, and then falling. His broom slipped from his hands and disappeared through the window. He landed on the sill.

High above, James frowned at the shadow that had just shot down from the Astronomy Tower and disappeared. It had looked oddly familiar...

A second howl echoed off the towers that surrounded him, making it sound as though it were coming from all sides. James looked out towards the Forbidden Forest, wondering why the werewolves were so riled up.

Shaking it off, he refocused his attention on Ravenclaw Tower.

* * *

><p>Albus stared in horror at the werewolf. Panic had erupted in the Hall, and students were fleeing as fast as their legs could carry them. The teachers were all standing at the Head Table, shocked.<p>

The werewolf leaped up onto the Ravenclaw table, still focused on Victoire. The Head Girl had her wand drawn, unwilling to move lest she should draw the werewolf onto some other unfortunate target.

There was a crash outside the hall. Albus saw Edmond come charging in, faster than any human could run. Jumping up on the table, the vampire lunged at the werewolf.

High above, Harry watched the fray from the sill of the high windows. His broom had fallen out of sight, and without it, he could not get down safely.

Drawing his wand, he aimed it at the pair wrestling on the Ravenclaw Table. But he couldn't hit one without hitting the other, and he didn't want to hit the man who had just saved his niece.

Looking down for his broom, he waved his wand. "Accio broom." Nothing happened.

The voice of Professor Markan boomed, magically amplified. "All students, please exit the Great Hall. Return to your houses." Rose grabbed Albus's hand and pulled him towards the entrance. He followed her, his eyes remaining fixed on the werewolf until he could no longer see it.

* * *

><p>Flint had to get that snitch. He felt he needed it, and he couldn't explain why.<p>

But he could also feel himself beginning to get tired.

Suddenly, several screams echoed from the direction he was running in. Dozens of students came charging down the hall at him. He froze.

Behind him, Sandra paused as well, staring at the students in surprise. Yet they all ran right passed the pair of them.

They turned and looked after the students in confusion, then glanced at each other.

The snitch had disappeared out of sight. Flint glared at Sandra, raising his wand again.

"Stupefy!" Her spell threw him backwards.

Just then, the sound of a howl echoed down the hallway. She paused, staring at the direction it came from, the same direction the kids had just come running from. Flint got to his feet, looking in that direction as well.

Both curious, they set off. Flint remained ahead of Sandra, and reached the Great Hall first, stopping dead in his tracks at the entrance.

On top of the Ravenclaw table, a strange man was wrestling with a werewolf. Neither of the sixth-years could believe that the man seemed to be doing so well. No normal human could stand against a werewolf without a wand. This man must have taken a strength potion... and a strong one at that.

Around the edges of the hall, scattered students remained, mostly older ones, in spite of the teachers repeatedly urging them to leave. Victoire Weasley, the Head Girl, remained close to the fray in the center of the room, her wand drawn. A little behind her stood her boyfriend, Kevin, and the Head Boy, Theo, both looking frightened.

The snitch reappeared. Flint's eyes shot up to it. Sandra saw it too, and it floated down towards her. She reached up and grabbed it, and he drew his wand, pointing it at her.

"Give that to me."

"Why?"

"I want it."

She looked at the end of his wand, then at his other hand, stretched out to receive the snitch. She could feel the snitch's tiny wings beating against her palm. Slowly, she placed it in his hand.

It was for Carla, and it would come back to her eventually. In the meantime, it would appease a different Slytherin who was very unhappy with Carla.

Flint held the snitch up and looked at it. As he uncurled his fingers from around it, it lifted up, hovering in front of his face. He stared at it, until suddenly it zipped off again, out over the fray and beyond, towards the back of the hall.

Flint swore loudly, raising his wand. "Accio snitch!" Nothing happened.

Sandra drew her own wand and aimed it at him. "Expelliarmus." His wand jumped from his hand to hers, and she backed away from him several paces. He glared at her.

There was a loud sound from the center of the room. The werewolf threw the man off of itself, and stood up on the table. It advanced on Victoire, its claws tearing the blue tablecloth in several places.

"Stupefy!"

The spell came from high up. Most of the remaining pairs of eyes in the room looked over to the wall beyond the Slytherin table, and then their gazes trailed upwards to the high windows. They couldn't see who had fired the spell.

The werewolf had been thrown backwards, off of the table. It lay on the ground between the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables, apparently stunned.

* * *

><p>Rose slowed down, realizing that she had run the wrong way. Not thinking, she had led Albus and Allison away from Gryffindor Tower rather than towards it.<p>

"Rose!"

Rose turned to see Scorpius coming towards her. If she had gone in the wrong direction to Gryffindor Tower, he had gone even farther in the wrong direction from the Slytherin Dungeons. "What are you doing here?"

"The Headmistress must be back by now. We have to find her."

"What for?" All of them turned. The Headmistress stood a little ways farther down the hall, Professor Zarin by her side. They hadn't been there moments before.

"There's a werewolf in the Great Hall!" Rose shouted.

The Headmistress's eyes opened as wide as saucers. "Professor, see that these students reach Gryffindor Tower safely." With that, she ran off in the direction of the Great Hall.

Scorpius looked at Rose. He hadn't meant that that was what they should go looking for the Headmistress for. He was confident that the teachers in the Great Hall could deal with the werewolf.

He looked up at Professor Zarin, who was looking right back at him, frowning.

* * *

><p>James was now hovering right next to Ravenclaw Tower, level with the Common Room. He looked in one of the windows. "Uncle George?"<p>

Uncle George had managed to find a broom for himself, and now sat on the couch. Upon hearing his nephew's voice, he perked up and looked towards the window, unable to see James because of the cloak. "Are you ready to face her, James?"

James nodded, then realized his uncle couldn't see this gesture. "Yes, I am."

"Okay." George got up and approached the window. "Take my wand." James reached out from under the cloak and took his wand from him. "Be ready for anything up there. Who knows how many of my devices she's in possession of. If I hear anything I don't like, I'll fly up there as well."

"I'll be okay," said James. This was his battle.

George nodded, understanding. "Okay. Good luck."

"Thanks." With that, James looked up towards the top of the tower. After a moment, he tilted his broom up, and began to fly slowly upwards.


	35. Atop the Eagle's Perch

**A/N: Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 35: Atop the Eagle's Perch**

His uncle's wand drawn beneath the cloak, he landed on top of the tower and warily dismounted from the broom, trying to keep it as much out of sight as possible. It was difficult, given that the roof of the tower slanted upwards in a cone at an increasing angle.

He couldn't see her anywhere. He squinted in the darkness, but there was nothing to see.

"Hello, Jamie." The voice was so loud that James was caught off guard, and nearly fell backwards off the tower. It seemed to be coming from all around him.

"Michaela," James replied, looking around anxiously, "where are you?"

There was no response. Suddenly there was a loud sound from right in front of him, and he nearly fell backwards again. Several red sparks flew up from the roof and hovered in front of his eyes. As more and more sparks flew up, he found it more difficult to see around them. He tried to sweep them aside with an arm, and they clung to the cloak, spreading on it in pools of red light.

"I can see you, Jamie." Once more, the voice was loud and coming from all sides.

"Well, I can't see you. That's not fair, is it?"

There was a pause, and then she replied, "I guess you're right." After a moment, a little ways off to his left, Michaela appeared, removing what looked like a white headband from her head. In her other hand, she held something that looked like a microphone headset, and when she spoke again, her voice sounded normal. "I'm a little surprised you actually followed me up here. Your uncle really wants to save his reputation."

James was surprised to see that she wasn't holding her wand. What other traps did she have laid out for him? "He just wants to talk to you."

Michaela quirked a brow. "Your uncle is a liar, Jamie," she said in a low voice. "He's a liar and a thief."

* * *

><p>Far below in the Great Hall, all eyes were now focused on the high windowsill from which the powerful stunning spell had come. Still, no one could see who was up there.<p>

After several moments, Professor Markan spoke, his voice magically amplified. "Who's up there?"

In response, a voice called back, "Are you okay, Victoire?"

All eyes turned to the Head Girl in the center of the hall. Her eyebrows had shot up nearly to her silver bangs as she continued to stare up at the high sill. "Uncle Harry?"

Several loud gasps sounded around the hall, as everyone looked back up at where none other than Harry Potter himself stood.

"Harry Potter," came the amplified voice of Professor Markan, who bore a wide smile. "Well, we're certainly glad to see you here."

"Thank you, Professor," Harry replied. "Now, could I have a little help getting down, please?"

"Certainly," the professor replied kindly. "You simply have to jump. Aim for the nearest table."

Harry Potter leaped out over the Great Hall, aiming for the Slytherin table. As he plummeted downwards, a gigantic red cushion appeared below him, causing several of the nearby Slytherin students to jump out of the way as it spread out beyond the edges of the table. Harry landed in it quite neatly, and slid down onto the table.

"Thank you, Professor," he said as he got down from the table and approached him.

"You're very welcome."

Just then, Headmistress McGonagall came charging into the hall. "Where is it?" she demanded, then stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the stunned werewolf lying on the floor.

"Ah, Headmistress," said Professor Markan mildly, "welcome back. You only barely missed the show."

The Headmistress looked quite flustered for a moment, then quickly composed herself. Pulling her gaze up from the werewolf, she saw Harry Potter standing next to Professor Markan. "Mr. Potter, I suppose I have you to thank for dealing with this creature."

Harry gave a grim smile. Caught in the moment before, he had forgotten that this "creature" was possibly Teddy Lupin. He now remembered, and it him like a rock in his chest. He needed to get this werewolf out of the Great Hall.

Standing a little ways down the Head Table, tiny Ferius Flitwick spoke up, his voice quavering nervously. "How should we dispose of it, Headmistress?"

The Headmistress looked down at the werewolf, and after a moment, her eyes widened ever-so-slightly. Harry could tell that she too had only just remembered the possible identity of the creature.

She and Harry exchanged a significant glance.

Professor Markan cleared his throat. "For now, might I suggest we bring it to my office? I have sufficient means of restraining it should it regain consciousness. I'm quite curious to see in the morning who exactly this werewolf is that managed to penetrate Hogwarts so unnoticeably."

Several of the other teachers nodded in agreement. The Headmistress cast another glance at Harry and sighed. "Very well."

Professor Markan's wand was out immediately, and the stunned werewolf lifted off the ground and hovered in the air. It floated towards the entrance to the Great Hall, the professor following.

Everyone in the Great Hall seemed ready to follow, and Harry cast an urgent glance at the Headmistress, who spoke up. "Only Mr. Potter and myself will accompany Professor Markan to his office," she said loudly, causing everyone else in the Great Hall to freeze and look at her in dismay. "All students will return to their houses. All teachers, proceed about your business."

Before turning to leave, Harry caught the glance of Professor Brant, the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, who had been the first to try to hurry out of the Great Hall after Professor Markan. Professor Brant drew back when he saw Harry looking at him, and looked away quickly.

The Headmistress followed his gaze, and looked at the professor, then back at Harry. "Come along, Mr. Potter."

"Yes, Professor," Harry replied automatically, following her to the Muggle Studies classroom.

* * *

><p>James was shocked by Michaela's accusation. He stared at her for several seconds, but her gaze didn't falter. "What?"<p>

"He's a liar and a thief," she repeated. Then she laughed. "Oh Jamie, of course he didn't tell you whom he stole his ideas from."

James glared at her. She was lying. She had to be.

"Ask your uncle how many of the Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes products he actually came up with himself," Michaela went on. "But then, of course he'll lie to you."

James shook his head, denying her words. His uncle was brilliant. Of course he came up with the products on his own.

"Face it, Jamie. It's the truth."

"Shut up!" He demanded, whisking the cloak off of himself. He raised his uncle's wand towards her.

In a flash, she was no longer holding the devices, but rather her own wand. The two stood on the sloping roof, staring each other down across their wands.

* * *

><p>Professor Zarin walked behind the students, making sure they didn't stray off the route to Gryffindor Tower. The four first-years walked quickly in front of him, feeling his cold gaze on their backs.<p>

Albus glanced sideways at Scorpius, wondering if the professor would hold him back and bring him down to the dungeons.

The Slytherin seemed to be thinking hard. Then he spoke, without breaking stride. "Professor, may I have a drink?"

The eyes of all three Gryffindors widened, and they stopped walking, turning to stare at him. Professor Zarin had stopped as well. "What?"

"I'm thirsty. I'd like a drink, please."

The Professor's gaze appeared sterner than ever. "Mr. Malfoy, this is not the time for antics. You will accompany your classmates up to Gryffindor Tower, and then, when it is deemed safe, you will return to the dungeons."

Scorpius stood firmly, returning the professor's stern gaze. "But I would like a drink, Professor."

The Gryffindors glanced at each other. Albus couldn't understand what Scorpius was doing. They all knew that Professor Zarin was deadly when he had access to people's drinks. Indeed, he had possibly already murdered one student at the beginning of the year.

"Mr. Malfoy," said the professor, speaking very slowly, "please proceed up to Gryffindor Tower with your classmates."

Scorpius stood defiantly for a few more seconds, then turned and walked on. The Gryffindors followed. Professor Zarin remained still for several seconds longer, staring after the young Slytherin. Then he continued walking as well, making sure they went up to the tower.

* * *

><p>"We've played this game a few times before, Jamie. I've won every time."<p>

James glared at her. Now was as good a time as any to change that. But up here, on the roof of the tower, he felt quite nervous. If one of them fell...

"Take it back!" he demanded.

Michaela shook her head. "It's the truth," she replied in a tone of fake sympathy.

"It is not!" James could take no more. He jerked his uncle's wand toward the girl. "Stupefy!"

Michaela had said "Protego" before he even got the spell out, and it deflected harmlessly off her shield and sailed out into the night sky.

"Expelliarmus!" James ducked the spell, not quite as confident in his shielding charms as she was in hers. He scrambled up the slope of the conical roof, trying to get away from the edge. The roof was strangely slippery. James couldn't remember it having rained recently.

Michaela watched him struggle, smirking. She saw the black band he was about to step on, and knew that he didn't. A moment after he stepped on it, he jerked his head up in fear.

She couldn't see the spells that he saw sailing towards himself, but she knew what he was experiencing. She had had the misfortune of stepping on one of these when she had been just ten years old. It had scared her half to death.

And George Weasley had simply laughed at her.

It was something she would never forgive him for. One of the many things she would never forgive him for.

As she watched his red-haired nephew struggle against the spells he was imagining, however, she felt a note of sympathy. Despite all the animosity that she and James had felt towards each other over the past year, she knew he had a better heart than his uncle did.

After a few more seconds of watching him, she raised her wand. A jet of gold light sailed from the end of it and struck the black band. The three golden Ws lit up, and then faded.

He turned and looked at her, his eyes wild. He sent another spell at her, and she deflected it deftly. She was better at shielding charms than any other form of magic.

She sent no spell back at him in response, and he glared at her, his wand-arm fully outstretched towards her.

* * *

><p>The hallways of the school were empty. Sandra walked along steadily, her guard up. She had remained in the Great Hall until the very end, after Professor Markan had left and Harry Potter and the Headmistress had followed, and everyone else present had slowly trickled out, talking in hushed voices about what had just happened. Flint had disappeared, and she still had his wand. The destiny snitch had disappeared as well.<p>

She quickly made her way back to the hospital wing. Suddenly, someone grabbed her from behind and shoved her against the wall. Pain shot through her injured side.

"Where's my wand?"

Reaching into a pocket of her robes, she pulled out his wand and threw it several paces away. He let go of her and scrambled to pick it up. She drew her own wand and pointed it at him for the third time. "Don't try anything."

He glared at her.

"If you do anything to hurt Carla, I'll know it was you. And so will the Headmistress."

His glare darkened, but he did nothing. Whirling around, he stormed off down the corridor.

Turning back towards the hospital wing, she continued on. When she arrived, she found a very flustered Madam Bell standing there. Behind her, Sandra could see the remains of the door of her office on the floor.

"What happened?" the nurse demanded.

Sandra could only smile weakly.

* * *

><p>"What's that stuff in your pocket, Kevin?" Victoire asked her boyfriend.<p>

"Huh?" He glanced at her sharply.

They were sitting on the couch in the common room of the Head dorms. Victoire was doing her very best to keep her mind off the encounter with the werewolf in the Great Hall.

"That pink stuff. What you rubbed on the back of Theo's neck in the Great Hall."

Theo glanced up from where he was sitting at the small table in the corner of the room, reading a book.

Kevin frowned at his girlfriend, but gave no reply.

"Let me see it?"

He hesitated. "No."

"Why not?"

"Kevin," Theo interjected, shutting the book and standing up, "Can I talk to you for a moment?"

"Certainly!" Kevin replied quickly, standing up and following Theo into his room. Victoire frowned as the door shut behind them.

* * *

><p>George hadn't heard anything in a while. He hadn't been able to make out any of the noises he had been hearing before, but at least noise had meant things were happening, which meant that his nephew was still okay.<p>

He was now hovering outside on the broom he had found, above the window that led back into the common room. He had flown out of it when he had heard noises outside the entrance, and sure enough, no sooner had he flown out of sight than a whole flood of Ravenclaw students came into the room, babbling nervously about who-knew-what. George could have sworn he heard the word "werewolf," but he must have been imagining things.

Now he was getting concerned about James. No noise was not good. Flying upwards slowly, he cast a glance up over the edge of the roof.

James was standing straight, his wand-arm outstretched, aimed at a very relaxed-looking Michaela. Nothing was happening.

Seconds passed. George watched tensely, keeping low so that neither would spot him.

Finally, Michaela spoke. Her voice was soft. "You can't beat me, Jamie."

George frowned. "Jamie?" he muttered under his breath. He circled around the roof until he was behind Michaela. Then he let himself rise up higher, revealing himself to his nephew.

James saw his uncle, but made no sound to let Michaela know. "I think I can," he replied.

Michaela rolled her eyes and raised her wand once more. "Expelliarmus!" James dodged the spell, slipping on the strangely-wet roof, but regained his balance and fired back. Michaela deflected the spell easily once more.

George was slowly creeping closer on the broom. James kept firing spells for her to deflect, keeping her distracted while her defeat came from behind. Wandless, George seized her by the arms and floated upwards, pulling her up into the air with him. She screamed.

Smiling, James jumped back on his broom, and followed them upwards. Still clutching her wand, Michaela fired spells at him, but on the broom he was much more capable of dodging, and her spells gave him no trouble. George squeezed her arm tightly, and she let out a yell, dropping her wand. It fell back down to the roof, sending red sparks flying everywhere.

"Where is he?" George demanded.

"I'm not telling," Michaela replied, struggling against her captor despite the height.

James had no idea who they were talking about. He only hoped that his uncle wouldn't hurt the girl. They were flying awfully high up.

"He's the one sending you my products, isn't he?"

"They're not your products!"

George gave no reply to this. He merely held the girl firmly, keeping her from falling out of his grasp as she struggled.

"You stole his ideas!"

George frowned. "Did he tell you that?"

"He showed me everything. All of his designs. You stole them from him."

"You mean my designs. He stole them from me."

"Liar!" Michaela struggled more violently than ever, and George fought to maintain his hold on her.

"You're just fourteen. You wouldn't understand."

"Oh really?"

James saw a flash of white in Michaela's hand. She had managed to pull that headband thing out of her robes, and raise it to her head. She disappeared, and George's eyes widened as she finally managed to struggle free of his grip.

Falling, Michaela tried to summon Sean's broom, which still lay on the roof below, but she couldn't pull off the spell without her wand. She landed on the roof and rolled down it, pain shooting through her arm. As she reached the edge, she tried to grab on to anything she could, but failed. Suddenly, as she went over the edge, something appeared next to her hand, seemingly having grown out of the wall itself. She grabbed on, hanging there.

She was still wearing the headband, and neither James nor George could see her. Her wand and Sean's broom still lay on the roof above. She looked up at what she was clinging to. It looked like a tree root, but was made of stone. And it had simply sprouted out of the wall of the tower as she had fallen.

The school itself had saved her life, somehow.

"Michaela?" It was James. He was hovering low over the roof, looking around earnestly.

"James!" she called back.

He looked towards her, and she could see the fear in his eyes. Still unable to see her, he flew towards the source of her voice cautiously. She tried to take the headband off her head, but the arm that wasn't clinging to the stone root was hurting so much from the fall that she couldn't lift it.

"Over here!" she called.

He flew a little faster, having heard her voice more clearly this time. Soon, he was right in front of her.

"Here! Here! Stop!" He stopped less than a foot away from her.

His hands reached out and found her middle. Gently, he pulled her onto his broom, and she let go of the stone root, which disappeared back into the tower wall.

Pulling the headband off her head, she watched as his eyes settled on hers. There was such anxiousness in his gaze.

Still holding on to her, he started drifting downwards. "Wait! No, up! I need to get my wand." He changed direction and went back up, landing back on the roof. She got off his broom and made her way over to her wand, cursing the potion she had poured over the roof earlier to make it slippery before he arrived.

"Are you okay?" It was George Weasley. She looked up at him. His face was bland, betraying no sentiment.

"I'm fine," she replied, picking up her wand. She then made her way over to Sean's broom, but when she tried to pick it up with her other hand, her arm throbbed.

James floated up behind her. "I'll come back for it," he said softly, "along with my cloak." She nodded and got back onto his broom, behind him this time. Wrapping her good arm around his waist, clutching her wand tightly, she let him guide his broom, which carried them back to Gryffindor Tower.

* * *

><p>"It's not there," said Albus.<p>

Rose frowned. "What do you mean it's not there?"

"I mean it's not there," repeated Albus. "I know where I left it, and it's not there now." Indeed, he remembered precisely where he had left the invisibility cloak, and it wasn't there now. Someone must have taken it.

It had to be James. He was the only one who knew about it, other than the people he had been walking around with all day.

But where was James now?

Scorpius looked uncomfortably around the Gryffindor Common Room for the third time. He felt wildly out of place here, and was anxious for them to get going, looking for the Headmistress again.

Just then, the portrait hole opened. Professor Zarin climbed through.

If Scorpius looked out of place in the Gryffindor Common Room, Professor Zarin looked like a complete foreigner.

"Mr. Malfoy," he said curtly, "please accompany me back to the dungeons."

Scorpius nodded, happy to leave this tower. "Yes, Professor." He strode past the Head of Slytherin and through the portrait hole.

Professor Zarin turned to the three Gryffindors, who stood watching him apprehensively. "If I catch any of you three wandering around this school after hours, I'll make sure that you are expelled," he said in the most threatening tone any of them had ever heard. He seemed to know exactly what they had been planning to do.

He climbed through the portrait hole, and the portrait swung shut behind him.

"Now what?" asked Allison softly.

"Professor Zarin is going down to the dungeons," said Albus. "That means that we have a while before he begins patrolling."

"Yes, but we don't know what other professors are patrolling tonight," replied Rose. "And after that werewolf in the Great Hall, there are probably a lot of them. And then, of course, there's Filch."

"Rose, we need to tell the Headmistress about Professor Zarin. And this is the one time when we know where he will be and we can avoid him. I'm going. You two can stay, so that you don't get in trouble if I get caught."

Rose frowned, opening her mouth to respond, but just then something brushed by a curtain on the other side of the room. All three looked, and were surprised to see James land and dismount from his broom.

They were even more surprised to see that behind him was Michaela, and he helped her off. His hand lingered on hers, until she reached up and brushed some red sparks off his robes. "Sorry about that," she said softly. "I should have put my wand away."

He laughed. "It's okay." He looked into her eyes, and she looked back.

A moment passed, and then she stepped away from him. "I hope now you understand the truth about your uncle."

He frowned. "I don't understand anything that happened tonight. But I'm going to ask him about it."

Now she frowned as well. "He's going to lie to you about it."

"I'll get the truth."

"Not from him." When he gave no reply to this, she shook her head. "Forget it, James. Just forget it." With that, she turned and walked up the stairs to the girls' dormitories.


	36. Confessions

**A/N: Sorry about the delay, and the lackluster chapter title.**

**I think what I'm going to do is take all the rest and consolidate it into two longer chapters, and try to have the whole story posted before mid-July.**

**Anyway, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always.**

**Chapter 36: Confessions**

He watched until long after she had disappeared. On the other side of the room, the three first-years waited, not knowing what to say.

Finally, Albus spoke up, softly. "James?"

He gave a jump, and spun around. "Albus? What are you doing down here?" There was a deep frown on his face.

"Where's the invisibility cloak?"

* * *

><p>Kevin slowly opened the door of Theo's room. He was convinced. It was time to end this madness.<p>

He stepped out, and suddenly she was upon him. Her hand dug into the pocket of his robes and pulled out the pouch. She poured some of the pink powder onto her hand and stared at it.

"Victoire!"

"What is this?" she demanded.

He hesitated, and when she looked into the room and saw the very solemn expression on Theo's face, she knew something was very wrong.

"Kevin, what is this?" she repeated.

He could say nothing. Her voice simply froze him. He could feel Theo's gaze on himself along with hers, urging him to tell her. But he couldn't.

Theo looked at the powder in Victoire's hand, and felt a chill on the back of his neck where Kevin had rubbed it before. He gently rubbed the spot, but froze when Victoire caught the movement.

She brought the hand containing the powder up to her own neck. Kevin's eyes widened as she applied the antidote to herself.

It was a matter of seconds before the change became visible. Her eyes widened, and she looked at him in confusion. But she was smart, and quickly that confusion turned into anger, directed at him.

"You did this." Her voice was barely more than a whisper. She drew her wand and aimed it at him. "You brainwashed me into loving you."

There were, of course, many intelligent things that Kevin could have said to try to calm her down. But, staring at the end of her wand pointed at him, he could only nod stupidly.

"Victoire..." began Theo, softly, but when her gaze shifted to him, so did her wand.

"Did you know about this?"

"No!" he replied immediately, jumping out of the line of fire.

She turned back to Kevin, and a jet of red light sailed from her wand and struck him. He went flying backwards until he hit the wall, and slid down it onto the floor, unconscious.

* * *

><p>Albus watched as James flew in once more through the common room window, clutching both the cloak and another broom in one hand. He frowned at the second broom, but paid little attention to it as he immediately tried to grab the cloak from his brother.<p>

James frowned, holding the cloak out of Albus's reach. "What do you want it for?"

Albus hesitated. What a long story to have to explain. However, he did his best to tell it as quickly as he could.

* * *

><p>"There's a while to go until the moon sets," said Professor Markan. "We won't find out until then."<p>

The werewolf was heavily bound on a table he had conjured in his office. Harry and Headmistress McGonagall sat in two chairs he had conjured. Harry was quite impressed by the professor's conjuring abilities, given the amount of weight that his conjured objects, particularly the table that held the werewolf, were withstanding. He wondered if the table would continue to hold when the werewolf awoke, before they stunned it again.

"I'll stay," said Harry immediately. Nothing was more important right now than finding out whether or not this werewolf was in fact Teddy. And if it was Teddy, he had to make sure he wasn't harmed. He looked at the Headmistress.

She hesitated. "There are other things I must do tonight," she said finally. "But I shall return well before the moon sets."

The professor nodded, and with a glance at Harry, she turned and left the office.

Harry looked at the professor. "May I use your fireplace? I need to floo Ginny."

"Certainly." The Professor opened a drawer of his desk and pulled out his stash of floo powder, giving some to Harry.

* * *

><p>Sandra wasn't surprised to find that her injured side was badly irritated, considering all she had put it through before it could heal properly. Madam Bell, however, was quite agitated about it, and forced her to lie down in one of the beds. Completely flustered by having been locked in her office and having had to blast her own door, she was in no mood to tolerate any more resistance from Sandra, and Sandra saw no reason to resist any further. At least this way she could stay close to Carla.<p>

Thus she settled into the hospital wing bed and closed her eyes, trying to fall asleep. It had, after all, been a very hectic day, and she was eager to push all that had happened from her mind and replace it with pleasant dreams of what was to come.

Just before she managed to fall asleep, however, she heard a buzzing. Opening her eyes back up, she saw a glint of gold pass over her bed. The destiny snitch hovered over Carla's bed, then slowly drifted downwards, coming to rest upon her blanket.

The girl stirred, and shifted in her sleep. The snitch let out a soft buzz, and hovered once more until she was still again. Then it settled back down.

Sandra smiled. The destiny snitch had proven itself, and she knew it would be a big help to Carla during her journey through Hogwarts. With this last pleasing thought, she finally fell asleep, the smile still spread across her face.

* * *

><p>James crouched low, glancing down at the Marauder's Map. Mrs. Norris was nearby.<p>

He doused the light of his uncle's wand, waiting. He knew that the three first-years were just a little behind him, beneath the cloak.

After a few seconds, he heard a mewing sound. A pair of bright yellow eyes swept across the corridor, and James held very still, holding his breath. Mrs. Norris continued on her patrol, apparently not having seen him.

He waited, listening until the cat sounds faded away. "Lumos," he whispered, looking down at the map. The dot labeled "Mrs. Norris" continued on steadily, and once it was far enough away, he moved again. Behind him, the cluster of three dots that were the first-years continued moving as well.

Looking ahead, he found the dot labeled "Minerva McGonagall," heading towards her office. He set out after her, moving quickly and watching the map for any other patrols passing close by.

As he closed in on the Headmistress, however, he paused, for two other dots were also approaching her. One was labeled "Roal Zarin," and the other was "Scorpius Malfoy."

* * *

><p>"Rennervate." Kevin awoke with a start, and looked up. Once more, Victoire's wand was pointed at him, and he stared at it in horror.<p>

"How could you?" she demanded.

"I love you," he rasped.

"Shut up!" she yelled. "I don't love you! I love Teddy! You know that! You knew that!"

He grimaced, still staring at her wand. "I thought I was better for you than he was. I was wrong."

Victoire's eyes flashed. "You were very wrong indeed." Before she could say or do anything more, however, Theo placed his hand on her arm, slowly pushing it down.

"Victoire, calm down. His heart is punishing him enough."

Victoire glanced at the Head Boy. "He did this to you, too, didn't he? That's why you became obsessed with Laura Corner."

Theo nodded.

"And yet you don't want to do anything to him?"

"Like I said, his heart is punishing him enough."

Victoire frowned down at her ex-boyfriend, who still sat huddled against the wall pathetically, looking up at the Head Boy and Girl.

"Fine," she muttered finally, lowering her wand and turning away from him.

"But for good measure," said Theo, "twenty points from Ravenclaw." It was the first time he had ever taken points away from his own house, and considering his time as Head Boy was coming to a close, it would probably be the only such occasion.

"Should be more than that," said Victoire.

He frowned at her. "Any more than that and we'll lose our lead for the House Cup."

"I see no problem with that," replied the Gryffindor. It would, after all, be Gryffindor which took the lead. "Do you honestly think your house deserves to win? Given some of the students in it." She gestured towards Kevin angrily.

"You think Gryffindor deserves the Cup? Look at some of the students there. Your cousin James and Michaela Black, for instance."

"Well, then beat us in the Quidditch Cup and take back the lead, or we'll win it anyway," said Victoire. "For I'm taking thirty more points from your house for what he did." Once more, she gestured furiously at Kevin.

Theo said nothing, knowing she was justified. The House Cup would in all likelihood be determined by the final quidditch match anyway, since it was between the two houses that were leading.

"And," Victoire continued, "you're both going to help me find Teddy." She had a sick feeling in her stomach, concerning the werewolf tonight. There could be no way a random student in the school should turn out at the end of the year to be a werewolf. That could only mean one thing...

* * *

><p>James came within sight of the Headmistress just as Professor Zarin showed up, leading Scorpius with his wand poised.<p>

"Headmistress."

The Headmistress stopped and turned towards the professor. James crouched down, dousing his uncle's wand once more before he was noticed.

"Professor Zarin, what is it?"

"Headmistress!" shouted Scorpius. "It was him! He—" Zarin waved his wand, and Scorpius fell silent.

"This one is going about the school spreading false rumors," Zarin said in a low drawl. "Quite incriminating ones, actually. About the professors."

Beneath the cloak, Albus cringed. What had Scorpius done?

"Oh?" replied the Headmistress, looking sternly at the young Slytherin. "And what has brought on this surge of rebellion, Mr. Malfoy? You may release him from his silence, Professor Zarin."

"I have no wish to hear any more of his—"

"Roal, release him."

Professor Zarin frowned, but waved his wand once more.

"He killed Jonas Zabini!" Scorpius shouted, pointing at the professor.

The Headmistress raised her eyebrows, glancing at the professor. Professor Zarin gave her a bland look back, reflecting no guilt at the accusation.

"And how did you come by this knowledge, Mr. Malfoy?" the Headmistress asked politely.

"The Sylvarum," said the young Slytherin.

"The Sylvarum?"

"Yes. It's..." But here Scorpius's voice trailed off, as he struggled to explain it. Then the resolve returned to his face full-force. "Ask Professor Markan! He knows!"

"What?" demanded Professor Zarin a bit too loudly. The Headmistress gave him a sharp glance.

Albus could hold himself back no longer. "It's true!" All three turned and stared in the direction his voice had come from, as did James. The Headmistress's wand brightened until it lit up the entire corridor, revealing James. Just then, Albus threw off the cloak, revealing himself as well as Rose and Allison. "It's true," he repeated, pointing at Professor Zarin. "He killed Jonas Zabini."

The Professor could only stare at the four Gryffindors who now stood against him along with Scorpius. The Headmistress settled her gaze on him, awaiting a response.

Professor Zarin glanced from one to the next. Finally, he composed himself and turned to face the Headmistress. "It's true."

The confession took everyone by surprise. The Headmistress's eyes widened, followed by her mouth, which she quickly covered with her hand.

"I killed Mr. Zabini," said the professor calmly. "I'm at a loss for how they all know, but it's true."

The Headmistress could manage no words, but she swiftly brought her wand up. The professor's limbs snapped together, and he teetered back against the wall.

The students couldn't believe it was that easy.

"Why?" the Headmistress demanded, once Zarin had broken the jinx.

"My reasons are my own, and mine alone."

"You will answer to the Ministry."

"I will indeed."

The Headmistress frowned. He was being extraordinarily complacent for one undoubtably bound for Azkaban. "You will return to your office and pack your things, then turn yourself in to the custody of the Ministry of Magic. If you try to do anything else, I will stop you and turn you in myself."

The Professor bowed, turned on his heel, and left without a word. She stared after him. Something was wrong.

Quickly, she turned to the students, who were now watching her, waiting for something else to happen. "Thank you all for this." With that, she turned and left them there.

Albus glanced up at his brother, utterly confused. Scorpius turned to the Gryffindors. "Well, that's done."

James looked down at the Marauder's Map. Professor Zarin did indeed appear to be returning to his office, and the Headmistress was heading for hers.

He watched the professor's progress down to the dungeons. Then, as the professor passed close to the Muggle Studies classroom, James noticed something else.

Inside Professor Markan's office, there were three dots. One was Professor Markan. The other two dots were labeled "Harry Potter" and "Teddy Lupin."

* * *

><p>Harry pulled his head out of the fire and stood up. He had related to Ginny everything that had happened, though he had not mentioned the possible identity of the werewolf. He had thought about asking her to contact Hermione, but he decided that Hermione could not afford to miss a night's sleep, given the other problems she had to deal with.<p>

He returned to one of the chairs the professor had conjured and sat down heavily. The werewolf was still unconscious. He glanced at the professor, who was reading a piece of parchment intently.

There seemed nothing worth saying. Harry tried to get comfortable, and let his eyes close briefly. He nearly jumped when a loud knock sounded on the door.

"Come in," said the professor, without looking up from the parchment.

Harry turned as the door opened. He recognized the man that entered as the one who had wrestled with the werewolf in the Great Hall.

"Professor," he said by way of greeting. Then his eyes fell on Harry. "Mr. Potter, I thank you for your well-timed spell." Both the man's gaze and his voice were expressionless.

"Er... you're welcome."

"Edmond," said Professor Markan, "I understand you're probably tired, but I have one more task I must ask of you." He released the parchment, and of its own accord, it rolled itself up and flew into Edmond's hand. "I'm afraid this time I must use you as an owl. Would you be so kind as to deliver this to my good friend Mr. Thomson? You remember where he lives, don't you?"

"Of course, Professor." And with a nod, Edmond turned to the large cabinet standing against the wall of the room, opened it, and disappeared within.

"Is that a vanishing cabinet?" asked Harry.

"It is indeed, Mr. Potter."

"Where is it connected to?"

"My home."

"I see." Harry remembered all too well the vanishing cabinet that had once been in the school, which had been used by Death Eaters to get around the school's defenses and kill Headmaster Dumbledore.

"I assure you, Mr. Potter, my home is just as safe as this school is. It is unplottable, invisible, and impenetrable. Much more-so than this castle, with all its not-so-secret entrances and exits."

Harry nodded. Professor Markan had impressed him thus far, and his kind tone made the auror relax further. "Who was that man?"

"Edmond? He's a close friend. I've known him a long time."

"There's something..." Harry began, but he didn't want to offend the professor.

"...strange about him?" the professor finished for him. "Well of course there is. Have you ever seen a man who could wrestle with a werewolf? No human can. Edmond is a vampire."

Harry couldn't help himself. His eyes opened as wide as they could, and his jaw dropped. Only once before had he met a vampire, and that had not been a particularly pleasant experience.

"He's more trustworthy than any human, believe me. He's never fed on a human before, and he never intends to."

Harry simply nodded. "Okay."

"In fact," said the old professor, giving Harry a look that was at once both kind and piercing, "I would go so far as to say that his father probably saved your life. A long time ago."

This caught Harry even further off his guard. "Really?"

"Certainly. He was a spy, one of the few that was able to get close to Lord Voldemort without being found out... for a while at least. He managed to stall the Dark Lord a few times. Bought you extra time, and ultimately paid for it with his life."

"I... I didn't know." Harry immediately felt bad, though he already knew of many who had given their lives to help him. He also felt better about Edmond now, knowing that his father had been killed by Voldemort.

"There were many of us," said the professor after a moment. "Albus sent all of his most sinister-looking friends to try to sneak into the Dark Lord's outfit. Only a few of us succeeded."

"You were also a spy?"

"I was many things. Most of the time, I was just an advisor. Most of the espionage was done by your friend Severus Snape."

Harry was amazed that he had never heard of Professor Markan before. But he knew there were many things Dumbledore had never told him.

"Usually, Albus came to me when he had a question about rare magic. Ironically, once I got close enough to the Dark Lord, he often asked me the same questions."

"Albus asked you about magic?" Harry was shocked by this. He had thought Dumbledore to be an expert on all kinds of magic.

"We learned from each other. I first met him many, many years ago, back when Gellert Grindlewald was still in power. My village was destroyed by dark wizards, and Albus was just beginning to gain a following against Grindlewald. I fled to his base here in Britain."

"Were you in the Order of the Phoenix?"

"No, I wasn't. I knew most of its members, though. Including both of your parents."

This was a lot of new information for Harry. He had thought he had learned all he could by now of the old order and of Albus Dumbledore, but here was a fresh new source of information.

The Professor, however, stopped him before he could ask more. "Now, if your curiosity is sated for the time being, I suggest you get some sleep. I will keep an eye on the werewolf."

Harry nodded, hiding his disappointment. His curiosity was certainly not sated, but the professor did not seem keen to answer any more questions tonight.

* * *

><p>"Dad's here."<p>

"What?" Albus glanced up at his brother. James showed him the map, with his father's and Teddy's names over their dots in Professor Markan's office. "Why?"

"Let's go find out," said James.

They moved quickly to the Muggle Studies classroom, checking to make sure no other professors appeared. Scorpius, Rose and Allison followed uncertainly, not quite as curious to know what was going on.

When they knocked on the door of Markan's office, his voice sounded from within. "Who's there?" The students hesitated, none of them knowing what to say. Then Markan opened the door, and frowned down at them. "What are you all doing here? Curfew passed a long time ago."

Peering around the professor, Harry spotted his sons. "James? Albus?"

"Dad," James replied. "We knew you were here. We saw you on—" He stopped, glancing up at the professor uncertainly.

Harry stepped into the doorway beside Markan. "I'm just here taking care of some matters, boys. You both should be in bed."

"But we wanted to see you, and Teddy too," said James, trying to glance around the two adults and spot the third occupant in the room.

Harry frowned. "Teddy?"

"We know he's here too," said James, covering the map beneath his robes.

Harry and the professor exchanged a long glance, then Harry stepped out of the office and put an arm around each of his sons. "Right now, there are important things I need to do. But summer is almost here, and soon we'll be together again. You'll see me plenty... and Teddy, too. For now, please go to bed."

The boys nodded. Behind them, the other students all began to turn around quickly, feeling awkward in the family moment.

The walk up to Gryffindor Tower was silent. Only once they were in front of the fat lady did Albus ask, "Well, now what?"

"What do you mean?" Allison asked quickly. "It's over, isn't it?"

Scorpius nodded. "Yes. Professor Zarin will go to Azkaban."

"We did what the Sylvarum wanted us to," added Rose.

James turned away from them towards the portrait hole. His mind was already reoccupied by another matter.

* * *

><p>"Well, now we know," said Harry.<p>

"We already knew," replied the professor. "This is just confirmation."

"So now what?"

"If Teddy remains here, there is going to be trouble. For him."

Harry nodded. "He can't be here in the morning. Even when he changes back, they'll still know it was him."

"Then we take him out of here," said the professor, glancing towards the vanishing cabinet. "Leave that to me. I'll take him somewhere safe."

Harry hesitated.

"I promise, Mr. Potter, Teddy will be safe."

There was complete honesty in the professor's gaze. Harry nodded. "Okay. Thank you." He turned to leave the office.

"Perhaps," said the professor after a moment, causing Harry to pause, "at a later time, we can talk more about Albus Dumbledore. I'm sure you are curious about more of the history that led up to your great battle against the Dark Lord."

Harry stared at the old man. This was an offer he could not refuse. "That sounds good," he replied. "I look forward to it. Farewell."


	37. The Trial

**A/N: Presenting the penultimate chapter! Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Same as always**

**Chapter 37: The Trial**

It was a sudden burst of light that awoke Laura the next morning. Though it had taken her a long time to fall asleep after the events of the previous night, it felt as though she had slept a long time.

"What?" demanded Pearl sleepily from behind her curtain.

Getting out of bed and pulling aside her curtain, Laura saw that a flood of light was coming in through the window of the dormitory. Quickly shielding her eyes, she moved towards the window to see what was going on.

"Ow!" She spun around at the scream that came from behind Michaela's curtain. Quickly throwing it aside, she saw Michaela sitting up in bed, clutching her arm. Michaela winced at the light that suddenly spilled across her bed. "Barbie! What the—"

"It's already almost noon!" Selina was at the window, looking outside. "We've all overslept!"

"I never oversleep," replied Laura. Indeed, she often woke up at even the slightest amount of light that managed to spill through the thick Gryffindor curtains. She was never late down to breakfast.

Selina pointed out the window. "Nature doesn't lie."

Michaela groaned, and Laura turned back to her. "What happened to you?"

"None of your business, Barbie," the girl snapped in reply.

"You should go to the hospital wing."

Pearl gave Laura's arm a tug. "Come on, don't worry about her." Selina gave a curt nod of agreement as she brushed by.

Laura glanced at her friends, torn between her dislike of the obnoxious American girl and her notion of what was right. "You two go ahead. I'll help her to the hospital wing."

Both of her friends frowned, but it was Michaela who objected first. "I'll be fine." Kicking her legs over the side of her bed, she got to her feet, clutching her arm in pain as she balanced herself.

Selina turned and left, but Pearl kept watching for a few more moments as Laura grabbed Michaela's robes and tried to help the girl into them, over her pajamas. Michaela struggled against the help, but seeing as she could only use one arm, Laura easily overpowered her, and soon she looked properly dressed in her Gryffindor robes.

Pearl turned, with a disapproving huff, and left the dormitory.

"Stop!" Michaela demanded, trying to push Laura away. Laura looked the other girl over, and got an idea. She whipped out her wand.

Michaela's eyes widened as she stared at the wand aimed at her. "What are you—?"

"Machia Rapa!" The features on Michaela's face seemed to soften, and the signs of morning weariness disappeared, even as her expression of anger remained. Laura grabbed her mirror and held it up for the other girl.

Michaela grimaced as she looked at herself in the mirror. "No, you did not just—"

"At least now you look somewhat presentable," Laura replied.

"I thought you said I should go to the hospital wing," the American bit back.

"You should!"

"And I need to look 'presentable' for that?" Michaela mimicked the high, lilting tones that she imagined Laura and her friends using. The expression on her face was so absurd that Laura almost laughed, but she wouldn't give the other girl the benefit of seeing it.

"Well, why not? You should always want to look presentable."

Michaela rolled her eyes.

Laura rolled her own eyes in response. "Come on, let's go see Madam Bell."

* * *

><p>Scorpius let out a groan. With only the slightest opening of his eyes, he recognized immediately that he was not in his own bed.<p>

Bright light shone through red curtains upon the red blanket that covered him.

It had been James's suggestion that Scorpius not return to the dungeons so late at night, after he had climbed with the Gryffindors to their tower following the encounter with Harry Potter. Considering Scorpius had just spouted the truth about Professor Zarin, the Head of Slytherin House, the dungeons were probably not the safest place right now.

"Hey, why's that curtain drawn?" a voice demanded. The curtain was pulled roughly aside, and Scorpius instinctively shut his eyes against the light.

At least he had a bed. The first-year boy's dormitory in Gryffindor had an open bed. It was customary for Gryffindor to be the smallest house in Hogwarts, and had been that way ever since the first rise of the Dark Lord. Not enough of the children who arrived at Hogwarts were brave enough to be sorted into Gryffindor rather than one of the other houses. This year however, only four boys had joined the Gryffindor ranks, even fewer than normal, and the dormitory had been prepared for five. So there was an extra bed, which Scorpius had been able to take advantage of the previous night.

Now, however, Franky Truit stood over him, frowning. "What's he doing here? That's Malfoy, isn't it? He's a Slytherin."

"Let him be," came Albus's voice. "He wound up here last night, and it was too late for him to go back to the dungeons."

Franky grimaced. "You should leave, Malfoy," he said in as threatening a voice as he could manage. "As soon as possible."

* * *

><p>The Great Hall was quiet. People spoke to each other in barely more than whispers. Every once in a while, someone would point to the spot on the Ravenclaw table where the werewolf had stood the night before, and then to the spot on the Slytherin table where Harry Potter had fallen from the high window.<p>

Rose couldn't stop herself from glancing at the Head Table every few minutes. Professor Zarin's chair was empty, and Headmistress McGonagall wore a very solemn expression. Among the other professors, a myriad of sentiments seemed to spread the length of the table.

Beside Rose, Allison stared intently at her plate. "Are you alright?" Rose whispered.

Allison nodded. "I never thought I would have any adventures like this at Hogwarts. I read about things like this happening, but I never imagined I would actually be part of it all."

Rose gave her a sympathetic look, which then became a wry smile. "Comes with being friends with a Potter, I guess."

Allison looked at her. "I can't imagine what it must be like to be related to them."

Rose could only shrug at that.

* * *

><p>"Let go of me!"<p>

Sandra frowned, turning to the entrance to the hospital wing, as the two young Gryffindors came bustling in. One was clutching her arm.

Madam Bell hustled quickly out of her doorless office. "What's going on?"

The Gryffindor who appeared uninjured glanced at the other one, who hesitated. "I... fell."

"She won't tell me what happened," said the uninjured one.

"Thank you, Miss Corner," said Madam Bell. "Unless you are also injured or ill in some way, you may leave." The girl quickly nodded, and with one last glance at the injured one, turned and left the hospital wing. "Now, Miss Black, you may tell me what really happened to you."

"I said, I fell."

"I see. Let me see that arm." Madam Bell took a step forward and gripped the girl's injured arm, earning a yell from the girl.

"Michaela?"

The voice came from neither the girl nor Madam Bell, and it certainly didn't come from Sandra herself. Immediately, she turned to the bed beside hers.

Carla was awake, and squinting at the girl.

"Carla," the girl replied. Ignoring Madam Bell, she moved over to Carla's bedside and knelt down. "How are you feeling?"

Sandra also got out of bed, earning herself a glare from the nurse.

"I've been better," Carla replied with a small smile. Then she noticed Sandra, and the smile faltered. After a moment, she said, "I guess you won."

"It doesn't matter," Sandra replied softly. She took the destiny snitch that was still lying atop Carla's blanket and pressed it into her hand. "This is yours."

Carla brought the snitch close to her face and studied it. "Thank you."

* * *

><p>Headmistress McGonagall never felt completely comfortable in the presence of the Wizengamot. Soon after she had become Headmistress, Kingsley had suggested that she be named a member of the council, but most of the Wizengamot had opposed the decision. Even after the departure of Cornelius Fudge and the dismissals of Lucius Malfoy and Dolores Umbridge, the relationship between the Ministry and Hogwarts remained tense, varying slightly depending on who sat in the executive seats.<p>

Ramicus Bendleby was one of those that was comparatively ambivalent about the school. He scarcely ever took the time to meet with the Headmistress, and the vast majority of their communication took place through short, uninformative letters.

In the past year, however, things had changed dramatically, for the worse. Since the death of a student at the school, the letters had been longer and worded more dangerously. It had been quite clear that if a second incident occurred, not only would the Ministry close the school, it would also remove the Headmistress, permanently.

Things had calmed down somewhat in the months since, but now that attention was drawn once more back to the incident, McGonagall feared that tensions would rise yet again.

She glanced sideways at Professor Zarin, who sat chained in the chair in the center of the room. Before him, the members of the Wizengamot sat on their high benches, while the Headmistress and Professor Markan sat off to the side.

Usually, it had been Professor Zarin who had accompanied the Headmistress to the Ministry. However, given the circumstances, McGonagall had asked Professor Markan to accompany her instead. He had accepted, interested in witnessing the trial. Now, however, he looked weary and a little uncomfortable. Upon arriving at the Ministry, he had received dirty looks from more than a few officials, who remembered his angry departure years ago.

A burly guard stepped forward, brandishing a vial of veritaserum. Zarin put up no struggle as the guard poured the potion into his mouth.

The trial then began with the usual protocol formalities, with the Minister listing the names of the participating wizards and witches before turning his attention on Zarin.

The point, however, was quickly reached. "Are you responsible for the death of Jonas Zabini?"

"Yes," Zarin replied as calmly as though he were discussing a quidditch match.

"And what motivation did you have for doing such a thing?"

"Blaise Zabini and I once argued over a piece of real estate. He cheated me. So I decided to take revenge."

"By killing his son?"

"Yes," was the reply, once again bizarrely calm.

It sounded completely ridiculous. Zarin had always seemed a very level-headed man. The Headmistress was shocked that he could do such a thing for such a trivial reason. However, he was speaking under the effects of veritaserum.

"Mr. Zarin..." The Minister sounded flustered. "You are aware, of course, that you are facing a lifetime imprisonment in Azkaban for this."

"Yes." There was no fear, no sentiment of any kind.

A man seated behind the Minister leaned forward and tapped the Minister's arm gently. The Minister gave him a brief glance before stating, "The chair recognizes Francis Marteus, Deputy Chief of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement." Professor Markan stiffened slightly, and McGonagall glanced over to see that he was looking at the floor rather than up at the deputy.

Marteus was a muscular, bald man with a slanting forehead and dark, deep-set eyes. His nearly-colorless lips were pursed tightly as he stared down at Zarin for several seconds before speaking. When he spoke, his voice was deep and gravelly.

"Minister, who is it that initially discovered Mr. Zarin's guilt in this matter?"

The Minister's eyebrows rose at this, and his gaze flitted over to the Headmistress. McGonagall had been hoping this would continue to be overlooked.

"Headmistress, if you would care to speak on that matter," said the Minister, eager to round on someone less prepared and composed than Zarin was.

McGonagall had to clear her throat before speaking. "Mr. Zarin's guilt was discovered by students, but that is no longer of consequence here, since Mr. Zarin has already confessed to the crime under the influence of veritaserum."

The Minister turned back to the Deputy, unaware of where this new line of questioning was intended to go.

"What age were the students who made this discovery?" Marteus pressed, this time asking the Headmistress directly.

A reflexive wince crossed McGonagall's face before she could stop it. "They were first-years," she replied, barely loud enough for the members of the Wizengamot to hear.

A flurry of whispers arose. Several members of the Wizengamot shook their heads.

The Minister stared at the Headmistress. "Is this a joke? You relied on the words of eleven-year-olds against one of your professors?"

McGonagall thrust a hand out towards Zarin. "He confessed!"

The gesture was futile, as the eyes of almost all members of the Wizengamot remained locked on her.

Surprisingly, it was Zarin who spoke up. "Minister, I do not know how these students discovered what I did, but they are correct. I killed Jonas Zabini, and the Headmistress is in no way at fault for taking their words against me. I am the guilty one."

A blatant look of suspicion crossed Marteus's features, but, fortunately, the Minister spoke up first. "Yes, I suppose you're right. While I do question the Headmistress's judgment in relying on the testimonies of children, it seems they were accurate enough in this regard. Mr. Zarin, you will be taken immediately to Azkaban Prison, and once you enter the prison, you shall never leave it."

Zarin gave a stiff nod.

With that, the Minister stood, as did several members of the Wizengamot. Marteus remained seated, gazing intently at the Headmistress. Professor Markan rose quickly and turned for the exit, gesturing for the Headmistress to do the same. As McGonagall rose and departed, she felt the Deputy's eyes on her the whole way.

* * *

><p>The reception room of Mr. Black's private office suite was even more poorly lit than Harry remembered it being when last he was here two months ago. At last he had received the summons to meet with Mr. Black, and though he was weary from the previous night, he was eager to finally meet the mysterious businessman who bore his godfather's last name. The secretary silently bid him wait in one of the black chairs, and a few minutes later, one of the doors opened the slightest bit, and the secretary gestured for Harry to enter.<p>

Harry moved towards the door and pushed it open. Inside was darkness. He stepped into the room, looking around and not seeing anything.

Behind him, the door shut.

A cold, high-pitched laugh sounded. Harry recognized the laugh immediately, and cold dread filled him. From out of the darkness emerged the pale, snakelike face.

"Welcome, Harry Potter."

Harry drew his wand and aimed it at Voldemort. This wasn't real. It couldn't be. A portrait was one thing, but this... What was this?

The Dark Lord drew his own wand. It wasn't the Elder Wand this time, but Voldemort's true, phoenix feather wand, which Harry had no special control over.

"Avada Kedavra!"

"Expelliarmus!"

Harry watched as the green light sailed towards him for the fifth time. He fully expected the Priori Incantatem to occur between the two wands, as it had before, but this time it did not. Instead, the two spells sailed right by each other.

Discounting the Priori Incantatem, Harry had survived the Killing Curse three times: once because of his mother using her love as a shield and twice when the spell was cast by the Elder Wand, which refused to kill him and instead destroyed a piece of Voldemort's soul and then Voldemort himself. Harry wondered if anything could save him this time.

The green light came closer and closer. Harry kept his eyes open, watching it the whole way.

It struck, and he felt nothing. Darkness fell.

He waited. Nothing happened. Voldemort was gone, and Harry could neither see nor hear anything. He blinked.

Was he dead? Was this it?

Suddenly, the lights came on, so intensely that Harry had to shield his eyes. When he moved his arm away and looked, blinking quickly, he found himself in an office. Behind the large desk sat a man twirling a large black pen between his fingers. He had thick black hair and a large mustache that curled down around both sides of his mouth. His dark eyes were small and beady, beneath a pair of thick, dark eyebrows.

Everything about the man, from the perfectly smooth tuxedo he wore on his powerful frame to the relaxed, proud expression on his face, conveyed an air of superiority. Harry had a feeling Lucius Malfoy would have liked the man immediately.

"I'm sorry about that, Mr. Potter." The man's voice was a deep baritone, and his tone contained none of the apology that his words did. "I had to confirm that it was in fact you, and what better way than to see you in a situation that you alone have faced before, and that others would have been terrified by."

Harry could say nothing. He merely frowned.

The man stood and extended his hand. "I'm Peter Black. You've been wanting to see me for a while now."

Harry tentatively reached out his hand and allowed the man to shake it. The grip was powerful.

Mr. Black sat back down. "As I understand it, this pertains to the missing dragon dust shipments."

Harry nodded. "Yes, Sir."

"Please sit down." He gestured to a black chair before the desk that was identical to the chairs in the reception room outside.

Harry sat, trying to observe the man with as much discretion as possible.

"Frankly, I'm surprised the Auror Department has taken such an interest in our problem. Thefts of dragon dust occur all the time, and ours is hardly a special case."

"Mr. Corner came to us after a particularly large shipment disappeared." This, of course, was not the main reason that Harry had agreed to investigate.

"Mr. Corner's a smart businessman. Nevertheless, this is still a very small problem to draw such attention to."

"Well, it is in your interest that we investigate it anyway, to prevent further thefts."

"Of course. I'm not complaining." Mr. Black's thick mustache seemed to widen across his face as he smiled. It was a very different expression from the kind smiles that Harry remembered Sirius giving.

"Mr. Corner tells me that he didn't start trading in dragon dust until after merging with your company." Harry figured this would be the most subtle manner of shifting the conversation towards Mr. Black himself.

Mr. Black nodded. "I've been trading in dragon dust for a long time now. It's very profitable, as I was able to show Mr. Corner. When he agreed to join his business with mine, it immediately became one of our top commodities."

Too subtle. Harry thought hard. "Apparently, merging with your company has been very profitable for Mr. Corner overall. Not just with dragon dust, but in a whole variety of ways."

"Of course. He gained prime access to the large American market, as well as all the products and talents my company had to offer him."

"What did you gain from the deal?"

Mr. Black raised his eyebrows, surprised by the question. "We seem to have wandered from the matter of the investigation at a remarkable pace. Nevertheless, since you seem so curious, Mr. Potter, I desired to come to Britain for several reasons. The first is Hogwarts, the most prestigious school of wizardry in the world. I have a pair of twins, you see, who deserve a better education than the magical schools in America have to offer."

Harry nodded. Hogwarts was the best magical school in the world. Of course a powerful businessman would opt to send his children to the best school.

"Second, I simply couldn't resist the prestige of the wizarding community in Britain. There is no community more renowned in the Wizarding World, so I decided to join it."

This was a motive that Harry was certainly used to by now, especially given his own part in the community's rise to prominence.

Mr. Black continued. "I'm a man of humble origins. I'm from a poor Muggle family, which had little talent for success in the Muggle world. Fortunately, I was born with a miracle gift that enabled me to escape from that world."

"You're Muggle-born?" Harry couldn't hide his surprise. He had been hoping greatly that this man might have some connection to his godfather, but that was impossible if he came from a Muggle family.

Mr. Black raised his eyebrows at the reaction. "I expected you, of all people, to not react so strongly to that, Mr. Potter."

Harry quickly caught himself. "I've never known a Muggle-born to achieve so much success so quickly selling magical products. This has been a well-known company for a while now."

Mr. Black shrugged. "Like I said, I came from humble beginnings. When I discovered my gift, I sought any way I could benefit from it as much as possible. I gained a modest education at a Wizard school and learned of all the potential the Wizarding World had to offer, especially in business. Then I seized that potential."

Harry nodded. He wasn't particularly impressed by the story, especially given his disappointment at this man's lack of connection to Sirius Black.

"And now I have gained access to even more potential in this renowned community. Renowned thanks in no small part to yourself, of course."

Harry had the grace to smile at the remark and thank him.

"Which brings me to another matter, though I had expected to come to this later in the interview. I'm hosting a party at my residence, as a formal introduction of myself to the community, and I would very much appreciate it if you would attend." The man opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out a small card, which he handed to Harry. Harry saw his and Ginny's names on the fancy invitation. "It would be very remiss of me to overlook a man of such renown in planning such an event."

"Thank you, Sir," said Harry, "though my days of 'renown' are mostly behind me." He didn't feel any shame at all in saying that, but rather more than a little fondness at the thought.

"Nonsense," said Mr. Black. "You still make the news with even the most unreasonable of accusations." He reached into a pile of papers, which stayed put as he pulled a periodical out from beneath them.

Harry warily eyed the copy of the Daily Prophet that the man placed before him. The words of the headline glared up at him.

"_ARE THE HEROES OF THE WIZARDING WORLD ENGAGED IN AN AFFAIR?_

_You heard it here first! It seems that even after each has been married for more than a decade, Harry Potter and Hermione Weasley née Granger have continued the affair that this most-respected newspaper first suspected back in their school days._

_The pair was seen sharing a prolonged, emotional embrace in a Muggle coffee-shop in London, clarifying beyond any doubt that there is something between them more than just the legendary friendship, something that their respective spouses would not appreciate."_

Harry rolled his eyes. He didn't need to read any more than that, though he might come back to the rest of the article later, during his spare time. He could imagine Ginny reading it, and knew she wouldn't react to it strongly, since it was hardly the first time he and Hermione had been suspected of having an affair. But what about Hermione...?

"You are most certainly still a topic of great interest in the Wizarding World, Mr. Potter. And of course, as is true of all men of great interest, you must be aware of who is around you during your moments of weakness. Personally, I don't believe this trash about you having illicit relations outside of your marriage."

"Thank you, Sir." Harry frowned down at the article. The author was not listed. It was time that he had a meeting with Rita Skeeter, for the first time in a long while. Once again, she was in need of a piece of his mind.

Harry left Corner Industries with little more than the knowledge of the Daily Prophet article and the invitation to a second encounter with Peter Black, at this party he was hosting. He would certainly attend, even though he wasn't quite so interested in the man now, knowing he was Muggle-born and could not be related to Sirius. After all, it had been a long time since Harry had been to a formal event with the other big names of the Wizarding World, and he no longer felt the same unpleasant apprehension about them that he used to.

Upon returning to his office at the Ministry, he found a very angry Hermione, who was holding a copy of the _Daily Prophet_ as far away from herself as possible, as though it were a dead rodent.

"Hermione!" Harry exclaimed, doing his best to form what he had heard referred to as a 'disarming smile.'

"Have you seen this?" she demanded.

"I have."

She hurled the paper away from herself, and it landed on the floor at his feet. Her strength always surprised him.

At the flick of his wand, the paper rose off the floor, folded itself, and flew over to the corner of his desk, where it proceeded to bury itself beneath a stack of files.

"I can't believe she's doing this again!" Hermione exclaimed.

"I can," Harry replied calmly, though still his tranquility failed to radiate to her. "It gets attention."

Her eyebrows finally rose out of the frown, and up high onto her forehead, well above their normal level.

"Isn't it obvious?" he went on. "She's desperate. The _Daily Prophet _has floundered, and we're always the best sources for a story."

"But it's floundered because she publishes this rubbish instead of real news!"

"And yet this still gets attention. Because it's us." To Harry it was that simple. They were the heroes. That meant they could always make it into the news, whether it was real news or not.

Hermione's shoulders sagged. "I thought it would stop, eventually."

"Perhaps when a new dark lord rises and a new hero defeats him."

Her eyebrows rose once more. "God forbid."

"That was a joke, Hermione."

"I know."

He stepped forward, opening his arms. "Come here." She moved quickly into his embrace, hugging him tightly.

A long moment passed before she spoke. "As long as you're not bothered, I guess I'm okay with it."

"And I'm only okay with it if you are." He felt her cheek muscles tighten against his shoulder. She was smiling.

Another moment passed before he spoke again. "There aren't any reporters around for this one, I hope." She leapt out of his arms as though he'd burned her, and looked around. He chuckled.

"That's not funny, Harry James."

His eyebrows rose at that. It had been a long time since she'd called him that.

Unable to help herself, she let out a little laugh as well. Then, quickly, she sobered up. "What about Ginny?"

"And Ron? I'm sure they'll be fine. They're used to this by now as well."


	38. The Toast

**A/N: Hey all. Once again, I'm extremely sorry for the long, sudden hiatus. Things got real busy for a prolonged period of time.**

**Anyway, here, finally, is the last chapter. It was too long, so I'm pushing the last bit into a short epilogue that I promise will be posted soon. So this is the last action chapter.**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: What you recognize isn't mine, what you don't recognize is.**

**Chapter 38: The Toast**

Ravenclaw had won the Quidditch Cup the last four years, and James had no intention of allowing them to win a fifth in a row. He clutched his broom tightly as Nathan spoke.

"With this win, the Cup is ours. Otherwise we would be in a tie, and the tiebreaker is total points margin. Therefore..." he paused, looking at one of the other chasers, who stepped forward.

"Even if we lose the snitch, we can still win the Cup," said Mackenzie Hutchinson, whom James knew to be a particularly brilliant fifth-year. "They need to beat us by at least 160 points in order to beat our total margin, so as long as we don't let them get ahead before the snitch is caught, we are fine."

The third chaser, a seventh-year named Jeremy Stevenson, stepped forward beside her. He was a quiet boy whom James had always found very likeable. "I don't mean to sound selfish, but as this is my last match at Hogwarts, I'd very much like to finally win the Cup."

Nathan nodded. "We do this for Jeremy then, and for Gryffindor!"

James let out a cheer with the others, then glanced over at Shane. The keeper looked very tense. James knew he would have to catch the snitch.

* * *

><p>"Are you ready?"<p>

Sarah glanced at her brother and nodded firmly. She wasn't obsessed with winning the Cup a fifth consecutive time like he was, but she had the power to win it, and she would. For her family and for Ravenclaw.

As the team took the field, she glanced across at her opponent. James stared back at her.

She felt no enmity towards him as she had towards Carla during the previous match. In fact, since discovering that it had been Perry who had been responsible for the prank that Michaela had blamed on James, she felt sympathy towards him.

Glancing up towards the stands, she could barely see Michaela and Marcus sitting on either side of the aisle between the Ravenclaws and Gryffindors. Michaela's arm was wrapped in a cast, since she had stubbornly declined to drink the bitter potion Madam Bell had offered her to heal faster. She maintained that she had broken bones before, and they had healed fine the Muggle way. This time would be no different. She would bear the pain, and it would strengthen her.

Stubborn American. But Sarah couldn't help but admire her for it.

The match began. Sarah and James flew up high and began their search.

* * *

><p>Rose shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Albus had pulled her away from preparing for exams to come watch the match. Though she was anxious to see Gryffindor win the Quidditch Cup, she was also doing her best to maintain the facts she needed for the exams in her mind.<p>

On either side of her, Albus and Allison looked up intently at the players flying above. Neither was thinking about the exams as much as she was, as much as they should be. Now that their grand adventure was over, they had to be normal students again.

But this was a quidditch match. An important one. She could understand.

She winced as Ravenclaw scored the first goal against Shane Thomas. As the Gryffindor team fought back, she found herself getting more and more into it.

* * *

><p>As the score built up, it became quite clear to James that the snitch would win it. Shane was letting in more goals than Sam Anderson was.<p>

It was on him. Same as always.

And he would bear it, carrying his team to the Cup. He glanced over at Sarah, who was looking around. He knew she had helped him, though he still didn't even know what exactly had happened with the invisible wall and the house-elf, since he hadn't been able to hear the conversation. But he knew that she had been responsible for freeing him and Uncle George and Allison.

She wasn't his enemy, only his opponent for the moment. Like her best friend...

He didn't have to look to know where Michaela was sitting in the stands. He knew she was with the Ravenclaws, like always.

Maintaining his search for the snitch, he allowed himself to drift on the air over towards the Ravenclaws in the stands. He could hear some jeers flying up to meet him, but he didn't care. This was a quidditch match, after all.

He was well out over the sea of black and blue robes when he saw a glint of gold on the far side of the pitch. It was only there for a moment, but he was certain he saw it. Lunging forward on the broom, he raced back over the pitch towards the location.

Sarah, already ahead of him for having stayed in the middle of the pitch, saw his movement and looked towards where he was heading. She looked confused for a moment, apparently not seeing anything, but nevertheless she began flying in that direction.

Below, Ravenclaw scored another goal, but Munden barely noticed it. "The seekers are on the move!"

James watched as Sarah reached the place where he had seen the snitch. She flew low over the stands, the Hufflepuffs below shouting up at her. Looking around, he tried to relocate the tiny golden ball. The sunlight reflected off the yellow badges in the stands as he flew over them, creating annoying distractions for his eyes as they sought a more particular gold glow.

"Well, I don't know what that was about," said Munden, "but it looks like Ravenclaw has scored two more times. They now lead 90-40."

Suddenly, blue filled James's vision as Sarah passed directly in front of him. Her quidditch robes billowed out behind her and swept across his face, filling his nostrils with a pleasant scent. He slowed for a moment as she continued on ahead of him.

He followed her with his eyes rather than with his broom. She didn't seem to be going anywhere in particular.

He shook his head, trying to clear the memory of the scent. Glancing back over towards the Ravenclaw stands, he wondered if Michaela wore that same scent on her robes.

Nathan flew at Sam Anderson and threw the quaffle. Anderson blocked the shot, returning the quaffle to his chasers.

Sarah flew back out over the pitch, and James followed her, trying to stick close but not too close. He knew that another whiff of that scent would distract him from finding the snitch.

She glanced back at him, and the look in her eye told him that she knew it, too.

But she didn't make any sudden move back towards him. Instead, she continued on, flying up high over the center of the pitch. As she climbed, he hovered below, watching warily.

Ravenclaw scored again. A constant chant was building up among them in the stands. "Andersons. Andersons."

Mackenzie grabbed the quaffle and shot along the side of the pitch, dodging a bludger. Billet flew directly at her, and she threw the quaffle to Nathan, who in turn threw it to Jeremy.

But Jeremy wasn't paying attention. He was staring at something that was buzzing right in front of his face. Something gold.

Immediately, James was soaring towards the chaser. "Jeremy! Don't move!" The seventh-year stayed perfectly still, staring at the snitch that hovered before him.

A hush fell over the stands. Out of the corner of his eye, James saw Sarah racing over to Jeremy as well, but he was ahead of her.

Almost there. Almost within distance of his arm. James lunged forward, arm outstretched, and his hand grasped at the air.

Nothing.

The snitch was soaring away, leaving the chaser far behind. James followed it, Sarah right behind him.

Ravenclaw scored again. James barely heard the cheers. He barely saw anything other than the snitch. He even barely felt the air rushing against his face as he flew.

But he felt the bludger that struck him.

Coming in from the side, it slammed into his gut, knocking him straight into Sarah. The two of them spiraled together, both trying to regain control.

Gryffindors and Ravenclaws alike were shrieking in the stands. The world spun quickly, and the ground raced closer.

Finally, Sarah managed to shove him away from her, straightening out her flight and slowing her descent. Then she grabbed onto his arm, slowing him down as well.

Silence fell. Then, after a moment, cheers erupted on three sides, from the seas of red, blue and yellow around them. Once James had completely regained control, he glanced up at her. "Thanks."

"You're welcome," she said with a smile. Then she started looking around again.

"Sarah!" her brother shouted, pointing in a direction. It took James a moment to realize what was happening through the fog of pain coming from his side, as Sarah's gaze followed the direction of her brother's arm to where the snitch was now flying. She took off again.

James followed. He slowly gained on her, until her robes were billowing in his face. There was that scent again.

Refusing to fall behind, he fought through the pleasant, distracting scent, pulling still closer to her. The snitch was soaring, but she was catching up to it quickly. He needed to get ahead of her.

Finally, it was no longer her blue robes blowing in his face, but rather her long, brown hair. This had an even stronger scent, which drew his attention away from the snitch.

The snitch made a sharp turn towards his side, but he didn't pull away in time. She turned in front of him, and their brooms collided once more. She pushed against him, fighting to keep herself on course.

Then, suddenly, he was upside down, clinging to his broom as she flew over him. She had managed to knock him all the way around his broom while he had been distracted.

Shaking his head to clear it, he didn't even bother to straighten out, flying upside down beneath her as he raced to catch up once more.

Figuring that he was now the one who had a chance to catch her off guard, he flipped back around right beside her. She jerked to the side to avoid another collision, and he raced ahead. The Gryffindors roared.

There was the snitch. The Ravenclaw chasers continued to build up the score, but it didn't matter. He was so close.

Then she was beside him again, her arm outstretched beside his. Simultaneously, they lunged forward.

He felt the metal ball beneath his fingers. Then it was against his palm. Quickly, he closed his hand around it.

There was no sound. No one could see who had caught the ball. The seekers flew side by side, arms still outstretched. James realized that two of Sarah's fingers were trapped inside his grasp along with the snitch. Using his other hand, he extracted her as gently as he could.

As they separated, he waved the snitch around at the crowd. An uproar arose.

He glanced at his opponent, who was clutching her fingers. "Are you okay?"

She looked at him and nodded, then smiled. "Congratulations."

"Sarah!" It was her brother, racing towards them as fast as he could. "What happened? Did he pull your hand off of it?" He glared at James.

"No, Sam. He got to it first."

Other Ravenclaws in the stands were shouting angrily, apparently having seen what Sam had. But the cheers of the Gryffindors drowned them out as Sam flew away, shoulders slumped.

After rubbing her fingers for a little while until they were no longer sore, Sarah offered him her hand. He managed to shake it gently just before Nathan and the others reached him, grabbing him and surrounding him in a huge, raucous embrace.

* * *

><p>Albus watched as Rose disappeared from the party in the common room. He knew she was going to study, and had no intention of following her.<p>

In the center of the room, James stood on a table, with Nathan and Jeremy on either side. Albus had just watched his brother try butterbeer for the first time in his life. James was more excited than Albus had ever seen him be, and Albus was a little afraid that he might do something very stupid.

James looked at the Gryffindors around him. His gaze paused after a moment, and Albus looked over and saw Michaela there, standing with Dominique and Molly.

Standing closest to James beside the table, Shane, Daryl and Dom called up to their friend, snapping his attention back to the fun. Jumping down from the table, he joined them.

Suddenly, Albus felt something shove him from behind. He turned to see Becky Bluestein there, having been shoved by Robert. "Sorry," she said, casting him a quick apologetic look before turning back to her friends. After a moment, she turned back to him. "Where did Rose go?"

"She's gone to the library."

Becky's eyes widened. "What?" Her voice had risen to what was an abnormally high pitch, even for her. "She's gone to the library during this party?"

"Yeah." Albus didn't think anyone should be surprised by this.

Becky shared a long glance with Leanna, who was standing next to her, and then both girls broke into a fit of giggles.

Not sure what was so funny, Albus turned away from them and looked back over to where his brother was. He saw that Pearl had appeared out of nowhere, and seemed to be gathering the courage to tap James on the shoulder. When she did, he turned to her, and his brows knit together slightly.

Albus couldn't hear what she said, but he saw her lean towards James ever so slightly, and James leaned away. Finally, after a few more words back and forth, Pearl turned away with a disappointed look on her face. Albus then noticed more movement as Michaela stepped back to where she had been before. Apparently, she had stepped in closer to get a better view of the exchange. Dominique and Molly were whispering to each other excitedly.

The portrait hole opened, and Victoire stepped through, followed by Professor Longbottom. Immediately, everyone froze and stared, then scrambled to hide the firewhiskey and butterbeer.

"It's okay," said the professor, "none of you are in trouble for this. I remember the Quidditch Cup celebrations during my time at Hogwarts, quite rowdy they were."

Victoire spoke up. "Although, Professor, I'm sure Gryffindor could afford to lose a few points without serious repercussions." A collective groan resonated around the room. Dominique took a step forward, looking ready to slap her sister. The two were still not on good terms ever since Victoire had dumped Teddy. Victoire let out a small laugh. "I'm just joking. Relax, everyone. James, we just wanted to say congratulations, to you and to the team."

"Just to us?" said Nathan. "We won this Cup for all Gryffindors." People gave loud cheers at this.

"Including yourself," Jeremy added to Victoire.

"And you, Professor," added Mackenzie from the far side of the table.

Jeremy stepped off the table and walked towards the professor and the Head Girl, bottle of firewhiskey in hand. "Come on, have a drink." He offered the bottle to the professor, who looked shocked.

"Jeremy!" Victoire exclaimed, staring at her fellow seventh-year.

"Oh relax, Victoire. I don't think you need to keep up the charade of being the model student anymore. We're almost finished here."

"Charade?" Victoire looked indignant, but then she looked around at her fellow Gryffindors and her expression softened. "Alright, I suppose I'll celebrate with you. It's not a charade, though."

Jeremy made a show of rolling his eyes. "Whatever you say. Professor?" Once more, he held out the bottle towards the professor.

Neville stared at the bottle. "Well, I suppose a small drink couldn't hurt." He then cast a mock-threatening glance around at the members of his house. "But not a word of this to the Headmistress... or any of the other professors... or any of your parents."

The room broke out in laughter.

* * *

><p>The Slytherins glanced in dismay up at the scarlet banners hanging over the Great Hall as they entered for the end-of-term feast. Scorpius didn't feel quite so bad about not winning the House Cup, as he hadn't developed much loyalty towards his house over the past year.<p>

He was upset, however, about leaving Hogwarts. He had enjoyed life here, despite most of his housemates. The year had passed very quickly for him. Even the final exams, which, thankfully, had not been as difficult as he had feared, had passed quickly. Indeed, the Potions exam, which had been administered by the Headmistress, had been surprisingly easy for him.

He sat down with his fellow first-years, opposite Alexander Zarin. Alexander hadn't lost any of his ego after his uncle's arrest, and had in fact become even more boastful. Given the number of Slytherins who had relatives in Azkaban already, he had hardly been viewed any lesser for it.

The Headmistress stood up, and the hall fell quiet. "Well, it seems we have reached the conclusion of another year here at Hogwarts. I am saddened to see you all go, though most of you I will see again in only a few short months." Scorpius doubted those months would feel quite so short. "I know that you all have learned a great deal over the past year, and that the professors have learned some things from you as well." She looked around at her staff. Scorpius saw Professor Markan look in his direction. Their eyes met briefly, and then the professor looked away. "And I must remind all students who are underage that you may not put what you learned here into practice outside of this school over the summer. Now, there is one more matter left..." She stopped, and Scorpius noticed that the House Cup was not on the table in front of her.

Just then, Mr. Filch came limping into the hall, carrying the large, golden cup. "Sorry, Headmistress, took a while to get it cleaned up. Seems someone decided to sneak into my office and pour some nasty stuff over it." He glared around at the students as he said this. Scorpius saw Alexander turn and look over at a fourth-year Slytherin with an appreciative smile.

"I see," said the Headmistress. "Well, it seems one last prank will be gotten away with at the school this year, since we hardly have time to find the perpetrators. Now then..." She waited as Filch limped indignantly over to his seat. "The points stand thus: Hufflepuff, in fourth place, has 352 points."

There were cheers from most of the Hufflepuffs, while others simply looked sullen. Scorpius was hardly surprised they had the fewest points, considering that, as far as he knew, they hardly ever did anything remarkable.

"Slytherin, in third place, has 380 points." Scorpius frowned. He knew he had gained a healthy number of points for his house, both from answering questions correctly and also from the Headmistress for his part in the discovery of Professor Zarin's... crime. However, he also knew that many of his housemates had lost points for stupid pranks and such. And Alexander had lost a number of points from upsetting his uncle on various occasions.

Across from him, Alexander was looking absolutely livid, glaring over at the Gryffindors on the far side of the room. Most of the Slytherins around him also looked quite unhappy.

"In second place, with 411 points, is Ravenclaw." Most of the Ravenclaws cheered, and a great deal of noise also began to come from the Gryffindors, who were eagerly anticipating the final part of the announcement. "And in first place, with 466 points, is Gryffindor." The Gryffindor table exploded. Scorpius was surprised by the total. He knew that the Quidditch Cup had determined the winner this year, but he hadn't realized just how close the tally had been before the Cup was awarded.

He felt mixed emotions as he watched the Gryffindors celebrate. He didn't hate them, unlike most of the other Slytherins, and in fact, Albus, Rose and Allison were perhaps the most reliable friends he had in Hogwarts. Nevertheless, he wasn't so fond of all of the Gryffindors. He saw Franky Truit banging his goblet on the table like a five-year-old. Certainly not all of the Gryffindors deserved the Cup any more than most of the Slytherins did.

As the feast commenced, Scorpius stared at the food in front of him. Besides breakfast the next morning, this would be his last Hogwarts food until September. Not that he minded Dengy's cooking at home in the least, but the food that one house-elf could make did not nearly compare with the food that all the house-elves of the Hogwarts kitchens could make collectively.

As he began to take food onto his plate, he noticed that Alexander was staring at him. "What?"

"You going to miss us, Malfoy?" There was a grin on his face that made Scorpius nervous.

"Hardly."

Alexander's face fell, feigning hurt. "Aw, really? But we've had so much fun this year."

"Right, how could I forget? And plenty more to come next year, I'm sure."

Alexander's expression turned thoughtful for a moment. Then the smile returned. "Perhaps." He then addressed all the Slytherins around him. "One last toast! Even though we lost." He began to gather everyone's goblets to him and pour pumpkin juice into them. "This year we learned much about each other, and became a team. Everyone who is a member of that team makes Slytherin stronger." He passed everyone back their goblets, casting a sharp glance at Scorpius as he returned his. Scorpius knew he was not a member of that team. "Over the years to come, we will make Slytherin the strongest of the houses, and undefeatable!"

The surrounding Slytherins cheered and drank. Scorpius raised his goblet half-heartedly, and brought it towards his lips. Then he froze, suddenly remembering a previous toast at the start of the year. Alexander had poured everyone's goblets, including Jonas Zabini's...

He quickly set the goblet down, and stared at Alexander.

"You didn't drink, Malfoy," said the other, indignantly.

"Not thirsty," Scorpius replied quickly, unable to tear his gaze away from the eleven-year-old boy before him.

"Not thirsty? This is a toast to Slytherin! To your house! It doesn't matter if you aren't thirsty."

Scorpius could feel the disapproving glances of the other Slytherins around him, but that didn't matter.

"Drink!" Alexander commanded, becoming more irritated.

Deliberately, Scorpius shook his fingers, and the goblet toppled sideways. The deadly liquid spread out over the green tablecloth. Chuckles sounded around him.

Alexander rolled his eyes. "You're so clumsy, Malfoy. No matter, I'll pour you more."

Scorpius quickly grabbed the goblet before Alexander could. "I can pour it myself, thank you." He lifted the pumpkin juice, then paused, wondering if there might be any trace of the poison in the empty goblet. Then he remembered Perry saying that the poison didn't leave any trace, and poured the juice. Raising the goblet, he smiled at the look of frustration on Alexander's face. "To Slytherin!" He drank.

* * *

><p>The feast was not yet winding down when Albus felt full. He sat back, looking around at his very-happy housemates. Both Rose and Allison had already stopped eating as well.<p>

"I can't believe it's over," said Rose.

"Only for a few months," Albus replied. Already he couldn't wait for September 1st.

They waited until the feast ended, and then got up. It was time to pack, as they would be leaving in the morning.

They had just left the Great Hall when Scorpius caught up to them. "Wait!" the Slytherin said loudly. Then he looked around to make sure no one else had noticed, and his voice softened. "We have to talk to Professor Markan."

Rose frowned. "Why?" Albus knew that Rose had been eager to end the year as normally as possible after the chaos of that week back in May.

"It was Alexander!" Scorpius exclaimed, still trying to speak softly in spite of his obvious urgency. "He killed Jonas Zabini. Not the professor."

"What?" Scorpius told them about the toast at the start of the year, and then about the toast that had just happened. Albus felt cold.

"But Professor Zarin confessed," said Rose.

"To protect his nephew," Scorpius replied, as though that were obvious.

Albus remained silent, for he had suddenly remembered another toast led by Alexander. On Halloween, the Slytherin had appeared at the Gryffindor table, and filled the goblets of Rose, James, Shane and Albus. Albus and Rose had both drunken, while James and Shane had instead flung their drinks at Alexander as a joke.

Had the boy poisoned one of their drinks? Or perhaps both?

Suddenly, Albus was very grateful for his brother's sense of humor. It may very well have saved his life.

"We have to talk to Professor Markan," Scorpius repeated.

Albus nodded. "Yes, we do." He immediately turned around and began heading towards the professor's office.

As it happened, they arrived at the office before the professor, and had to wait for him for what seemed like an interminable amount of time. When he arrived and saw them standing before his door, he frowned, and then sighed. "And here I thought we might end the year without any more incidents."

"Sorry, Professor, but we need to talk to you."

"Dimitrius!" It was the Headmistress, who was striding quickly to catch up with the professor. She froze when she saw the students.

"Just a moment, Headmistress," said the professor. "I think we are about to be informed of another remarkable discovery by these young students."

The Headmistress frowned. Albus glanced back and forth between them.

It was Scorpius, however, who spoke up. "Alexander Zarin killed Jonas Zabini. Not his uncle." Two pairs of gray eyebrows shot up at this.

"Explain your reasoning," said the Headmistress. Scorpius quickly told them about the toasts. The Headmistress and Professor Markan then shared a long glance, before the Headmistress spoke again. "Professor Zarin confessed under the influence of veritaserum at his trial. He is responsible for the death of Mr. Zabini."

Scorpius's eyes widened.

A long, awkward moment passed before Rose spoke up. "Um, Professor, are elves affected by veritaserum?"

The professor was surprised by the question, before he realized where Rose was going. "No, Miss Weasley, they are not. Most potions affect elves differently from humans, others don't affect them at all."

The Headmistress had no idea what this was about. She frowned at the professor. "Elves?"

"Thank you for informing us, Mr. Malfoy," said the professor. "The Headmistress and I will discuss this matter."

Scorpius frowned, but Rose, who was apparently satisfied with the professor's response, tugged on his arm. "Come on."

Scorpius snapped her a quick glare, but followed her down the hall. Albus and Allison followed as well.

"Professor Markan knows about the Zarins," said Rose as she released him, once they had rounded a corner. "He'll know what to do."

"The Sylvarum chose us. It's our job to do something. Or at least help."

"I have a feeling we did exactly what the Sylvarum wanted us to do," said Rose. She was looking thoughtful.

Albus knew that expression on his cousin's face. She was on to something, or at least thought she was.

"Remember our meeting with Professor Markan before we entered the Forbidden Forest the first time? Well, your second time." Albus and Allison nodded, though Scorpius obviously had no idea what she was talking about. "He already knew that we had been trying to find out about the Sylvarum. And the vampire that you met in the Forbidden Forest and who then recovered your cloak just happened to be a friend of his."

Albus nodded. He had been surprised that Professor Markan had known so much as well, but he had no idea where Rose was going with this.

"I think the professor already knew about the Zarins. Before we told him."

Scorpius frowned at this. "What? Then why didn't he do anything about it?"

"Because he could have made something like that up. He didn't have any way to prove it. We, on the other hand, are not creative enough to make this up."

Albus nodded. "My father once said something about the word of a child being the most believable. He said Headmaster Dumbledore had told him that."

Rose smiled. "That's also why the professor said we should go the day of the quidditch match. So that James couldn't come as well."

"James couldn't have made this up."

Rose shrugged. "You never know."

Scorpius looked frustrated. "That's it? That's all we were supposed to do, tell the adults so they would believe us?"

"I don't mind that at all," said Allison.

"Me neither, for a first adventure," added Rose.

Scorpius crossed his arms, frowning at her.

"What did you expect? To battle Voldemort in a secret chamber deep beneath the castle?"

Albus grimaced at the implied mention of his father. He definitely had a lot of shadow still to get out of.

Scorpius's face fell. "Something like that."

Rose rolled her eyes. "Relax, Malfoy, we've still got six more years here, remember? There'll be plenty more chances to be heroes."

"If we want to be," Allison added quickly. The others all looked at her.

There was one more problem, though. "Alexander had plenty more chances to kill with his toasts over the course of the school year," Albus said. He reminded Rose about the toast on Halloween.

"Both Professors Zarin and Markan showed up immediately after that happened," she replied. "I think they were both watching Alexander very closely."

Scorpius nodded. "Professor Markan was watching the Slytherin table tonight as well."

"If Alexander had done anything more, they would have known," said Rose. "And a memory in a pensieve would have been enough to prove it."

"And now Professor Zarin is in Azkaban," said Scorpius. There was a sudden expression of guilt on his face.

"The Headmistress will sort it out, no worries," said Rose, though there was a look of guilt on her face as well. "Though I have a feeling Professor Zarin would rather remain in Azkaban taking the blame than allow Alexander to be in trouble. That's why he confessed in the first place."

* * *

><p>Scorpius awoke suddenly in the darkness. He looked around, unable to see anything. But there were noises.<p>

A pair of feet shuffled through the dormitory. Scorpius remained perfectly still, barely allowing himself to breathe. The person reached the door, which apparently was already open, and stepped through. The door shut behind him.

As silently as possible, Scorpius slipped out of bed, careful not to step on his packed trunk. Drawing aside his curtain, he crept over to the door and slowly cracked it open.

The voice of the Headmistress came from the common room. "We know very well what you did, Mr. Zarin."

"I didn't do anything," Alexander replied, his voice defiant.

"You are responsible for the death of your housemate, Mr. Zabini."

"I didn't do that, my uncle did. He confessed."

"You did do it, Mr. Zarin. Your uncle confessed to protect you."

This was followed in quick succession by the voice of Professor Markan. "What's more, just tonight you tried to do the same to Mr. Malfoy. Fortunately, he spilled his drink."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"We spoke with your uncle," said the Headmistress. "He is prepared to continue taking the blame for your misdeed. He asked that we not publicly incriminate you. So, against my better judgement, because of my respect for him, I'm going to give you a second chance."

"Against my better judgement as well," Professor Markan added. "But first, I'm going to ensure that you cannot use your special ability to cause further harm."

There were a few seconds of silence, and then Alexander screamed.

"You cannot remove those gloves, nor do anything to damage them," said the professor. "And don't worry, they will grow as your hands grow."

"Take these off!" Alexander demanded. "You have no right to—"

"You should be in Azkaban right now." Professor Markan clearly sounded angry now. Scorpius suspected that more members of the house had been woken up by this.

"Remove these!" Alexander yelled.

"He will not, Mr. Zarin," said the Headmistress. "Nor will I, nor will anyone else. You will not have any further use of your poison."

Silence. Scorpius could imagine the boy fuming. He was frustrated that more wasn't being done, although he didn't think Alexander would try anything too terrible without being able to use his secret ability.

"You may return to your dormitory now," said the Headmistress. There were footsteps, and Scorpius quickly ran back to his bed, drawing his curtain. He listened as Alexander returned to his own bed and drew his own curtain. And then there was silence.


	39. Epilogue: Departure

**A/N: Hey all! Here's the final bit. Of course, I'm not answering the lingering questions in here, even the minor ones, so keep an eye out for the sequel: **

**"Albus Potter and the Stultifera Navis" (Ship of Fools).**

**Hopefully I'll get around to launching it soon.**

**Best of luck to everyone going back to school.**

**Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: If you've read this far, then you definitely already know what is mine and what is Rowling's.**

**Epilogue: Departure**

The day before the summer solstice turned out to be the first day that year that truly felt like summer. The grounds were lit by bright sunshine, and the sky was completely devoid of clouds. The canopy of the Forbidden Forest seemed to glow bright green, and the surface of the lake was a perfect glassy blue. However, all of this only served to increase the reluctance of the students as they made their way down towards the great gates of Hogwarts. The train was waiting for them, and as Albus laid eyes on it, he could only grimace and move as slowly as possible towards it.

"I suppose I am looking forward to seeing Mum and Dad again," said Rose beside him. "And your parents as well."

From his other side, Allison chimed in. "And, like you said last night, it's only for a few months."

They found a compartment in the train and sat down. Minutes later, Scorpius joined them.

"Hello," said Allison. Her voice really was ringing like a bell, and Albus couldn't believe she sounded so jolly on the day they were leaving Hogwarts.

"Hi," Scorpius replied, sitting down next to Albus. "Alright there, mate?"

"Just swell, all things considered."

"Yeah, I hear you. But listen." He told the Gryffindors about what had occurred during the night in the Slytherin dungeon.

"I knew it," said Rose. "Of course Professor Zarin would continue protecting his nephew. And the punishment is alright, I suppose, considering how young Alexander is. He can't do anything with his fingers anymore, and he has a chance to learn better."

"He gets away with murder," said Albus, frustrated.

"But he can't do it again."

"At least until he learns other ways to kill," said Scorpius.

"They'll be watching him, though."

"And so will we," said Albus. Scorpius gave him a sideways glance. "You want to be a hero, don't you?"

The Slytherin hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

"Or perhaps you want to become a hero separately from us," said Rose, her voice lowering. "Perhaps now that our joint venture is over, we're back to being Potter and Weasley in your book."

"And Levin," Allison chimed.

Scorpius hesitated. "No." But he didn't sound convinced.

Rose shook her head. "We know how it works, Malfoy." She made a point of emphasizing his last name.

"Rose..."

"You don't have to call me Rose. Call me whatever you want to."

"Rose," he repeated. He wasn't looking at her, but rather at the floor.

It was a few moments before Rose's expression softened. Then she nodded. "Okay."

The train passed along the tracks, through the rolling green hills and past pastures and villages. After what seemed like far too short a time, it arrived at King's Cross.

"You guys go ahead," said Scorpius, as the students began to file off the train and find their families. After bidding him farewell, Albus moved through the train to the exit, Rose and Allison following. Outside on the platform, he quickly found his father's face, an older version of his own.

Harry waved to his son and niece as they emerged. "Welcome back!" On either side of him, Ron and Ginny beamed at their children.

Albus greeted each of the adults. "Is Aunt Hermione in Australia again?"

No sooner had he said this than Hermione came up behind him, pushing a trolley for her daughter to load her trunk onto. Hugo appeared behind her. Ron helped his daughter heft the trunk onto the trolley and secure the owl cage on top of it.

A streak of red appeared as Lily came darting towards her father from the crowd. Grabbing his legs, she moved to the other side of him as James came up behind her, trying to catch her.

"James, what are you doing?" Ginny asked.

"Just having some fun," James replied. "It's good to see you guys." He gave each of his parents a hug.

Harry chuckled. "Us guys?" His laughter died when he saw the look his wife was giving him.

Out of the corner of his eye, Albus saw Scorpius walk past them. Their eyes met for the briefest of moments, and the Slytherin never broke his stride as he passed.

"You beat him in every test, right, Rosie?" Ron asked in a hushed voice. Hermione frowned at her husband.

Rose rolled her eyes. "Not quite. He beat me in Potions, barely."

Ron frowned. "Good thing the Potions master was thrown in Azkaban, then."

Rose and Albus shared an uneasy glance.

Hermione was looking down at her daughter with an expression of surprise. "You actually know what his test scores were? When were you talking to him?"

"On the train," Rose replied in a level voice.

Both of her parents stared at her, as did both of Albus's parents.

"What was he bothering you about?" Ron asked, his voice low.

"He wasn't, Dad. He sat with us."

While both Ron and Ginny continued to stare at Rose, Albus saw his father and aunt share a smile.

James was distracted, and Albus caught him glancing sideways at the people behind him. Looking over his shoulder, Albus spotted Sarah Anderson and the Black twins.

"Where are your parents?" Sarah asked.

"They don't come here. They have too much work to do," Michaela replied. "We're going home on our own."

"Oh, okay. Well, perhaps if you would like, you both can come and spend some time at my house over the summer."

The twins shared a glance. "That would be nice," said Marcus.

"James." Harry's voice drew the attention of both of his sons away from the conversation. "Ready to go?"

"Yeah," James replied. He loaded his trunk onto a trolley and secured his owl cage on top of it. Rejecting his mother's offer to push the trolley, he pushed it himself, leading his family off of the platform.

Just before they left through the wall, Albus and Rose each turned and cast one last look at the Hogwarts Express. One last sight to remember over the next few months, before they returned for their next adventure.


End file.
